The diagnostic value of computerized short-term oesophageal pH-monitoring in suspected gastro-oesophageal reflux.

In 109 consecutive patients suspected of having gastro-oesophageal reflux (GOR) a 3.5-h pH-monitoring in the oesophagus was performed during the daytime. The data were stored in a portable recording system, and three different variables (mean pH, mean acid clearance rate, and number of spikes) were calculated. Compared with a combined endoscopic-histologic score for the diagnosis of oesophagitis, assumed to be due to GOR, the 3.5-h pH-monitoring had a sensitivity of 85% and a specificity of 81%. The data suggest that the short-term pH-monitoring is almost as accurate as the traditional 24-h pH-monitoring and more convenient both for the patient and the gastroenterologic unit.