[GERD and sleep disturbances].

Gastroesophageal reflux disease(GERD) is strongly associated with sleep disturbances. Several studies have shown that gastroesophageal reflux disease is strongly associated with sleep disturbances. Proton pump inhibitor(PPI) therapy improves subjective sleep parameters in GERD patients; however, the effects of this therapy on objective sleep parameters remain controversial. Numerous factors such as stress, lifestyle, and surrounding circumstances affect sleep status in humans, it is hard to examine the direct effect of acid reflux on sleep in patients with GERD. In this paper, we show that acid reflux directly causes sleep disturbances in rats with chronic esophagitis and esomeprazole significantly improved some objective sleep parameters in Japanese GERD patients.