Surgery May Be Best Option for Treating Extreme Acid Reflux

Marco Patti, MD

For many people with severe gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), avoiding certain foods and taking acid-neutralizing medications is not enough to control symptoms. Marco Patti, MD, director of the Center for Esophageal Diseases, says medications help up to 95 percent of the 40 million Americans with GERD. "But that leaves a lot of people who actually would do much better with an operation," he adds.

Unlike medications that provide only temporary relief, anti-reflux surgery--called fundoplication--can cure GERD for most patients who are candidates for the surgery. At the University of Chicago Medical Center, fundoplication and many other esophageal procedures are performed using minimally invasive techniques that result in faster recoveries.

University of Chicago Esophageal Surgery in the News

The Chicago Tribune recently featured a story about Margaret Rietman, 59, of Schererville, Ind., who suffered for 20 years from GERD and hiatal hernia until she had surgery. Dr. Patti is featured in the story and performed Rietman's surgery that was done through five keyhole incisions and took only one hour. »Read the Chicago Tribune story

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Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease
Learn about GERD, medical and surgical treatment of GERD, and details about who may be a good candidate for fundoplication.

Marco Patti, MD
Dr. Patti is an internationally known esophageal surgeon who has extensive expertise in treating GERD, achalasia and esophageal cancer.

Center for Esophageal Diseases
The Center for Esophageal Diseases is one of the few centers in the United States dedicated solely to diagnosing and treating esophageal diseases.