[24-hour pH monitoring of the hypopharynx in 545 patients with special regard to a critical data evaluation].

BACKGROUND

Although a number of reports exist on 24-hour pH monitoring of the hypopharynx, no consensus has been reached about evaluation standards. In particular the influence of food and beverages is still different estimated. The parameters which are used to analyze the data of pharyngeal pH monitoring are not consistent.

PATIENTS AND

METHODS

545 patients underwent esophagopharyngeal 24-hour pH monitoring in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at the University of Rostock from February 1996 to December 2003. A score was calculated by excluding technical artefacts and pH drop caused by ingestion.

RESULTS

Pharyngeal acid exposure was detected in 228 patients. The values of the reflux score ranged between 0 - 62,4 with a median value of zero. The left skewed score distribution shows a high abundance of patients with a minimum score and a limited amount of patients with high score values. The results were compared to reports of other authors.

CONCLUSIONS

Evaluation standards are necessary for a reproducible analysis of pharyngeal pH monitoring data and for the comparison of different reports. A qualified score for the analysis and the comparison of pharyngeal pH monitoring data is suggested.