Reflux: Getting to the Cause

A large portion of children I see in my office experience a condition known as gastro-esophageal reflux, also known as GER, reflux or heart burn for short. When this pattern takes on a more serious disease status, it is known as, gastro-esophageal reflux disease, or GERD. In contrast to most pediatricians, many parents are reluctant to use medications to manage the symptoms of GER unless it is severely interfering with their child’s and the parents lives especially with sleep. GER is a potentially serious problem that can lead to other problems later in life including poor sleep patterns, failure to thrive, pneumonia, dental problems, asthma and other respiratory problems, which is why it is important to find the cause. Many children experience reflux at some point before 12 months but most resolve by 1 year as they begin to be upright longer after feedings.