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Patient Education – GD

Eosinophilic Esophagitis

  1. What Is It?
  • Eosinophilic esophagitis is a gastrointestinal disease in which white blood cells build up in the walls of the esophagus (the tube that connects the mouth to the stomach), causing the esophagus to become inflamed (swollen) or damaged.
  1. What are the Symptoms?
  • Some of the most common symptoms include: nausea, vomiting, stomach pains, chest pains (centrally localized and unresponsive to antacids), heartburn, weight loss, difficulty swallowing, and food obstruction of the esophagus.
  1. What Causes It?
  • Eosinophilic esophagitis is an allergic reaction of your esophagus lining to different allergens, both food and environmental. Family history and genetics are a large factors. Males are more likely to be affected. People with allergies and/or asthma are more likely to be affected.
  1. How Do I Treat It?
  • Notify your doctor or gastroenterologist. If eosinophilic esophagitis is suspected, an endoscopy (small camera inserted into esophagus) will be conducted to collect biopsies (tissue samples) of the esophagus. If eosinophilic esophagitis is confirmed after biopsy analysis, allergy testing will be conducted to determine the possible food and/or environmental allergies that contribute to the disease.
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Functional Abdominal Pain

  1. What Is It?
  • Functional abdominal pain refers to real pain that is experienced despite the fact that there is no blockage, inflammation, or infection to indicate pain.
  1. What are the Symptoms?
  • Chronic abdominal pain (2 or more months) in otherwise-healthy children.
  1. What Causes It?
  • Despite the lack of identifiable causes, the pain is real. It is due to the digestive organs being extra sensitive and/or changes in gastrointestinal movement patterns. It can be triggered or made even more severe by viral/bacterial infections or episodes of stress or constipation.
  1. How Do I Treat It?
  • Work with the child, doctor, and family to manage functional abdominal pain through behavioral changes. Identify, manage, and avoid pain triggers such as constipation, stress, and lactose intolerance to reduce pain. Handle pain episodes with breathing exercises and meditation to reduce pain. Do not allow the child’s pain to become a reason for missing school or changing social activities. The physician may recommend additional medication treatments.
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Celiac Disease

  1. What Is It?
  • Celiac disease is chronic condition caused by an immune reaction to gluten (a protein in wheat, rye, and barley). In affected individuals, eating gluten triggers an inflammatory (swelling) immune response in the small intestine. This inflammatory response damages the lining of the small intestine and prevents normal absorption of nutrients.
  1. What are the Symptoms?
  • In affected individuals who continue to intake gluten, some of the most common symptoms include weight loss, stunted growth and development, bloating, and diarrhea. Individuals may also experience an itchy, blistering skin disease (dermatitis herpetiformis) on the elbows, torso, scalp, and buttocks.
  1. What Causes It?
  • The exact causes of celiac disease are not known. However, its affects are seen when the immune system overreacts to gluten in food and damages the hair-like projections (villi) lining the small intestine that are needed to absorb important nutrients from food. Celiac disease may be triggered by surgery, pregnancy, childbirth, viral infection, or stress.
  1. How Do I Treat It?
  • Notify your doctor or gastroenterologist. If celiac disease is suspected, an endoscopy (small camera inserted into esophagus) will be conducted to collect biopsies (tissue samples) of the small intestine. Celiac disease can only be confirmed after observing changes in the villi. For affected individuals, there is no cure for celiac disease. Symptoms can be managed and complete healing can occur by following a strict gluten-free diet.
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Liver Disease

  1. What Is It?
  • There are many different types of liver disease. It may be inherited genetically or caused by environmental factors such as viral infections or alcohol use. Liver disease causes damage which eventually can result in permanent scarring and possibly liver failure.
  1. What are the Symptoms?
  • The most common symptoms of liver disease include yellowing of skin and eyes (disease called jaundice); abdominal pain; swelling in abdomen, legs, and ankles; itchy skin; dark urine colour; pale, bloody, or tar-coloured stool, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite.
  1. What Causes It?
  • Liver disease can be caused by infections, immune system abnormalities, genetics, or cancer. Infections are typically due to parasites or viruses which are spread through blood, semen, contaminated food/water, or close contact with an infected individual. These infections cause inflammation and reduce liver function. Most of the time, liver infections are caused by the hepatitis viruses: Hepatitis A, B, and C. Immune system abnormalities result in your own body attacking itself which affects your liver and causes liver diseases. Abnormal genes can result in substance build-up in the liver, resulting in liver damage and disease. Cancers such as liver cancer and bile duct cancer would be considered liver disease. Heavy alcohol use, the sharing of needles, exposure to other people’s bodily fluids, diabetes, and obesity can all increase your risk of liver disease.
  1. How Do I Treat It?
  • Different liver diseases will require different treatments. Treatments will either involve lifestyle modifications, medications, or surgery. Lifestyle modifications may include the discontinuation of alcohol use or losing weight. Surgery is often reserved for severe liver diseases that may lead to liver failure and require a liver transplant.
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  1. What Is It?
  • Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a chronic (recurring) disease wherein stomach acid and stomach contents flow back into your esophagus (the tube that connects the mouth to the stomach), irritating the esophagus lining. Reflux is classified as GERD once it becomes so frequent and severe that it begins to cause the symptoms and complications outlined below.
  1. What are the Symptoms?
  • The most common symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease include burning sensations in the chest and throat, chest pains, sore throat, sour tastes in mouth, difficulty swallowing, and dry coughs. Over time, the esophagus lining will become inflamed and damaged, causing bleeding, narrowing, or increased chance of esophageal cancer.
  1. What Causes It?
  • Gastroesophageal reflux disease is caused by frequent and recurring reflux as outlined above. When you swallow food, there is a sphincter at the bottom of the esophagus that relaxes to allow food passage to the stomach and then contracts to close the passage, effectively keeping food and acid in the stomach. However, in the cases that this sphincter is weak or relaxes abnormally, stomach contents and acid are able to flow back up the esophagus. People with conditions such as obesity, asthma, diabetes, and smoking increase the probability of GERD.
  1. How Do I Treat It?
  • Notify your doctor or gastroenterologist. If, based on symptoms, GERD is suspected, monitoring tests will be conducted to measure the amounts of acid in your esophagus by determining when and for long stomach acid flows back into the esophagus. One type of monitoring system involves the threading of a tube into the esophagus through the nose. Another type involves a probe being placed in the esophagus during endoscopy (small camera inserted into esophagus). X-Rays may also be taken of your upper digestive system. If a GERD diagnostic is confirmed, treatment often involves medications that control acid (antacids), reduce acid production, or heal the esophagus. If needed, the physician may suggest more effective prescription medications or even surgery.
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REMINDER: This information is intended to provide general information and should not be used to base a diagnosis or treatment. Please consult the doctors about your specific condition and the approach for treatment.

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