Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease and dyspepsia in adults: investigation and management

Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease and dyspepsia in adults: investigation and management - National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)

This guideline covers investigating and managing gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) and dyspepsia in people aged 18 and over. It aims to improve the treatment of GORD and dyspepsia by making detailed recommendations on Helicobacter pylori eradication, and specifying when to consider laparoscopic fundoplication and referral to specialist services.

Dyspepsia describes a range of symptoms arising from the upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract, but it has no universally accepted definition. The British Society of Gastroenterology (BSG) defines dyspepsia as a group of symptoms that alert doctors to consider disease of the upper GI tract, and states that dyspepsia itself is not a diagnosis. These symptoms, which typically are present for 4 weeks or more, include upper abdominal pain or discomfort, heartburn, gastric reflux, nausea or vomiting. In this guideline, gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) refers to endoscopically determined oesophagitis or endoscopy-negative reflux disease.

- Fluoroquinolone antibiotics: In October 2019 we made changes to recommendations on eradicating H pylori and updated footnotes in this guideline to reflect new restrictions and precautions for the use of fluoroquinolone antibiotics because of rare reports of disabling and potentially long-lasting or irreversible side effects.


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