Clinical features and prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease in infants attending a pediatric gastroenterology reference service.

CONTEXT: In infants, it is not always easy to distinguish between pathological and physiological gastroesophageal reflux based only on clinical criteria. In Brazil, studies about gastroesophageal reflux disease in infants are few and are even rare those that used prolonged esophageal pH monitoring for its evaluation.

OBJECTIVE

To describe the clinical features of gastroesophageal reflux disease and to determine its prevalence in infants with gastroesophageal reflux attending a tertiary Pediatric Gastroenterology Service and submitted to esophageal pH monitoring for investigation.

METHODS

Descriptive study in 307 infants in whom esophageal pH monitoring (Mark III Digitrapper, Synectics Medical AB, Sweden) was performed during the period December, 1998-December, 2008. The clinical features studied were age group (1-12 months and 13-24 months), and clinical manifestations that motivated the indication of pH monitoring.

RESULTS

One hundred twenty-four (40.4%) were female and 183 (59.6%) male with mean age 12.2 +/- 6.2 months (1-23 months). The prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease was 18.2% (56/307). One hundred forty-eight (48.2%) were 1-12 months old and 159 (51.8%), 13-24 months. No significant difference was found between the prevalence of these two age groups (P = 0.3006). Gastroesophageal reflux disease was more frequent in those with digestive manifestations (24.2%), crisis of cyanosis/apnea (23.8%) and mixed manifestations (21.5%). Respiratory manifestations were the most frequent indication (39.1%) of pH monitoring. However, the prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease was lower (12.5%) in this group compared with in those with digestive manifestations (P = 0.0574), crisis of cyanosis/apnea (P = 0.0882) and mixed manifestations (P = 0.1377). All infants that presented clinical manifestations as crisis of cyanosis/apnea and abnormal pH-metry were < 3 months of age.

CONCLUSIONS

In our Service, the prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease associated with acid reflux in infants revealed elevated. Infants with crisis of cyanosis/apnea constitute risk population for gastroesophageal reflux disease in which diagnostic investigation needs to be considered.