Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) and Laryngopharyngeal Reflux (LPR) are defined as upward movement of the gastric contents to the esophagus and the larynx respectively. Patients with LPR may present with dysphonia, chronic cough, throat clearing, vocal cord granulomas, stridor, dysphagia, laryngeal cancer and heartburn. STUDY DESIGN: Clinical retrospective. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A retrospective study of 157 patients with LPR was carried out from March 1998 to May 2000. Patients were divided into 3 groups: mild, moderate and severe reflux, according to the signs and symptoms; and then studied according to gender, age, and digestive complaints. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: One hundred and ten patients were females and 47 were males, with age ranging from 21 to 85 years. Most common symptoms were dysphonia (69.42%), throat clearing (52.86%), heartburn (33.12%) and cough (18.97%). Thirty-four patients had mild reflux, 60 had moderate reflux and 63 had severe reflux. Dysphonia was prevalent in all groups, followed by a lump in the throat in the moderate group and throat clearing in the severe group. Heartburn was prevalent in the tree groups. These findings were in accordance with literature.
gastroesophageal reflux disease; laryngopharyngeal reflux; chronic laryngitis
