Data collection tool
Assessment of symptoms related to LPRD was done using the reflux symptom
index (RSI).1 Each item ranges from 0 (Absent problem)
to 5 (significant problem), with a maximum score of 45 (Table
1). A diagnosis of reflux was made if the patient had a RSI score
>13. Patients were followed up in one-month intervals up to
three months and 70-degree rigid laryngoscopy was repeated every month
to notice any improvement in the RFS of the studied patients.
Meanwhile, diet and lifestyle modifications were insisted to patients
such as regular exercise, avoiding spicy and oily foods, timely intake
of meals, cease cigarette smoking, tobacco or alcohol consumption.
Proton pump inhibitors (PPI) twice a day before meals were administered
to patients.
Patients who were found to have a RSI score >13 were
subjected to 70-degree rigid laryngoscopy and their laryngeal findings
were noted and scored according to the Reflux Finding Score (RFS).[8] (Table 2).
The scoring tool used to scale the features of LPRD evaluates eight
items such as: subglottic edema, ventricular obliteration, erythema or
hyperemia, vocal fold edema, generalized laryngeal edema, posterior
commissure hypertrophy, granuloma or granulation tissue, and excess
laryngeal mucus. Individual items were scored according to severity,
anatomical site, and presence or absence of the relevant finding, for a
total score of 26 (Table 2). Patients who had a score of 7 or higher
were considered to have LPRD.