Questions about esophageal dilation

June 7, 2012

Hello!

I just got home from my esophageal dilation. It was pretty scary and exciting. I

had to stay overnight at the hospital because they might have teared the

esophagus, so they wanted to make sure that my esophagus was all right. It was

really intense, because right after I woke up, I was a bit queasy, and they

rushed me to radiology to do a test, where I had to drink this watery liquid

while they took x-rays. I didn't know what was going on at the time, so I was

scared. The worst part was, I threw up on the radiology table while they were

moving me on it, but after that, I was fine. They apparently gave me a little of

everything to stop the nausea. Luckily, my esophagus was ok, and I was able to

go home the next day. It is so awesome to finally be able to eat things easily

again! After 5 years... I almost forgot what it felt like to eat normally.

Sadly, I just had the worst heartburn I have ever had a few minutes ago. The

heartburn lasted for almost 30 minutes, and I must have ate almost 4 tums, extra

strength. I am now out of tums for the night.

Luckily, after drinking some milk, it finally went down. This is partially

the reason why I am posting here. I just have a few questions.

1. Since they opened up my LES, does that mean I have GERD now? My doctor gave

me a few heartburn medicine, one to protect the esophagus, and the other is

prevacid. Does this mean I am going to have a lot of heartburn?

2. How long does the effect of the dilation last? My doctor says that if my LES

closes up again, I will have to have surgery.

3. Also, I have been burping and farting a lot lately, does this have anything

to do with the dilation? It is so weird, I hardly ever burp or fart, but now I

have to a lot, lol.

Thank you for answering the questions!

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