Treatments and solutions designed to bring you relief.
Northwest Institute for Digestive Surgery offers top of the line surgical solutions for GERD. Historically, most patients chose minimally invasive surgical treatments because medications failed to relieve acid reflux symptoms. While this is still a leading cause of seeking a surgical solution, other reasons are becoming more common. These include the inconvenience and cost of taking daily medications, the side effects produced by medications, and the desire to actually stop the reflux (medications only treat the symptoms, not the disease).
Barrett's esophagus describes a condition in which the lining of the esophagus changes its character and cell type in response to chronic gastroesophageal reflux. This is done by the body in an attempt to protect itself from the chemical injury caused by the gastric juices. Unfortunately, this type of transformation promotes the development of esophageal cancer. Patients with Barrett’s esophagus have a 30-40 times increased risk of developing esophageal cancer.