RESULTS
A total of 2500 patients had voice and throat complaints for more than a month in the department of Otorhinolaryngology at Ekenywa Specialised Hospital where 800 (32.0%) were male and 1700 (68.0%) were females. Out of the 2500, 1520 (60.8%) patients were found to have a RSI of >13. Out of the 1520 patients subjected to 70-degree laryngoscopy, 1425 patients (95%) were found to have a RFS >7. Of the 1425 patients with RFS >7, 1165 were females (81.8%) and 260 were males (18.2%). (Table 3).
Regarding symptoms reported by patients with LPRD as per RSI and RFS, the most common symptom from RSI was sensation of a lump or foreign body in the throat, followed by excess throat mucus and throat clearing and episodes of cough following eating or lying down. The most common sign noted on RFS was hyperemia/erythema of the endolarynx, followed by thick endolaryngeal mucus and posterior commissure hypertrophy.
Upon scheduled follow up at the clinic, majority of the patients showed improvement in RFS scores in the first month of initiation of treatment for LPRD. Out of 1425 patients only 15 patients (1.05%) failed to show any improvement after three-months therapy comprising proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and antacid twice daily. Those with refractory response to the scheduled regimen for LPRD were counseled to undergo esophagogastroduodenoscopy and were then treated accordingly by specialists including medical and surgical gastroenterologists.