Lower esophageal sphincter pressure and distal esophageal body function between Hispanic Americans and non-Hispanic whites are equivalent.

OBJECTIVE

Esophageal manometry (EM) is the gold standard examination for diagnosis of esophageal motor disorders. Normal values for EM among ethnic groups are not presently available in the literature. The aim of this study was to obtain normal values of EM in adult Hispanic American (HA) volunteers and compare these with those obtained in non-Hispanic white (nHw) volunteers.

METHODS

Healthy HA and nHw were recruited from the Albuquerque metropolitan area. Ethnicity was self-reported. Exclusion criteria were symptoms suggestive of esophageal disease, medication use, or concurrent illness that could affect EM. All underwent EM using a solid-state system with wet swallows. Resting lower esophageal sphincter pressure, percent peristaltic contractions, esophageal body contraction velocity, distal esophageal body contraction amplitude, and distal esophageal body contraction duration were measured at end expiration.

RESULTS

Forty HA and 24 nHw were enrolled. All subjects completed EM without difficulty. Esophageal body contraction velocity was significantly lower in HA (3.5 cm/s+0.1) than nHw (4+0.1, P=0.01). There were no differences in resting lower esophageal sphincter pressure, percent peristaltic contractions, distal esophageal body contraction amplitude, and distal esophageal body contraction duration.

CONCLUSIONS

Esophageal body contraction velocity is slower in normal HA compared with nHw; other EM measures are equivalent between groups. Presently accepted normal values of EM obtained from nHw may be used for HA.