Subjective, laryngoscopic, and acoustic measurements of laryngeal reflux before and after treatment with omeprazole

Laryngeal manifestation of gastroesophageal reflux is felt to be prevalent in our society. In general, diagnosis has been based primarily on symptoms. Historically, additional testing included laryngoscopy, barium swallow, manometry, and more recently, single- and double-probe pH monitoring. We evaluated 68 patients who were symptomatically suggestive of having reflux laryngitis. We administered surveys grading their symptoms. All patients underwent standardized videolaryngostroboscopic evaluation and computerized acoustic analysis. Patients then underwent a uniform therapy of dietary restrictions and omeprazole, a hydrogen ion inhibitor, for 12 weeks. Patients were then retested. This regimen demonstrated an 85% success of relieving symptoms. Utilizing the new laryngoscopic grading system, improvement was found to be statistically significant in improvement of all findings except granulomas. In patients with the pretherapy complaint of hoarseness, acoustic measures of jitter, shimmer, habitual frequency, and frequency range all showed significant improvement. The authors conclude that in patients with symptomatic reflux laryngitis, standardized videolaryngoscopy and, if hoarse, acoustic analysis are useful exam techniques to aide diagnosis and monitor therapy. Anti-reflux therapy with omeprazole is effective and improvement can be objectively demonstrated with the techniques described.