Tests say it's not GERD but docs keep saying it is!

I had a 24 hr PH test that indicated that I was negative for GERD. No acid, no reflux. I had a manometry test that measured the pressure and my LES is less than normal pressure and I have a hiatal hernia and esophogeal spasms.  I knew about the hernia five years ago but it never caused me a problem. Today I go back to the GI to review my options.

My symptoms:

• Small bits of food get caught in the back of my throat. Near my tongue.
• I cannot eat dairy, animal protein of any kind, eggs, nuts or wheat. Doing so seems to always cause more food to get stuck. Tiny pieces but food none the less.
• Hoarseness if I talk longer than just a few minutes.
• Throat often feels tight and sometimes my chest feels tight too, almost like asthma.

I went to an ENT and all she said was that my vocal cords were swollen. I did the barium swallow...that was normal. I am on Aciphex, 20mg, 2 times a day which doesn't do anything. No heartburn.

Now that my tests say I do not have GERD I am frustrated that the doctors still say that I do! I had blood tests for food allergies and all were negative. Today's appt is supposed to discuss the Nissen procedure but I'm not real eager to have surgery when they don't know what the problem is to begin with.

If I avoid all the food triggers and just eat a plant based diet, I seem to be "almost" normal. Still something there but not nearly as annoying as what I am experencing right now after eating a bite of cheese last night (tight throat, particles stucks, constant swallowing trying to get it out).

What do you think? It's been a year of battling with my doctors. None of them talk to one another. Maybe my lupus has something to do with it but my lupus doc says no.

I've had four separate doctors take a look, they all say it's GERD because of the hiatal hernia. That includes two GIs, my primary doc and an ENT. The only thing that says it's not GERD are the results from the tests. I even went to a different hospital. One that not even connected with my insurance to get their input. They are the ones that found me to be negative but now insurance won't pay for me to go to the docs there.

I've researched all over. I believe it's food allergies even though test have come back negtative. Will continue to research.

I would have some food allergy tests done before you proceed with the Nissan. Irritations caused by allergies can be similar to gerd symptoms.

You have a hiatal hernia because the opening in your hiatas is too large. That allows part of your stomach to slip up. This is resolved by a few stitches and/or mesh to prevent this from happening again. It seems possible that you can have a hiatal hernia without having gerd, doesn't it?

Have you had an endoscopy done? They can look at the lining of your stomach and look for ulcers. They look at the lining of the esophagus. If it is red and inflammed in the 3" above the stomach, you are definately having acid splashing upward. Failure to treat this can lead to Barretts esophagus, which can lead to ulceration, narrowing or cancer of the esophagus.