Value of Pepsin in Saliva to Assess the Postoperative Outcome of Patients With Gerd

Background The aim of this study was to evaluate the value of salivary pepsin to assess the outcome of surgical treatment of patients with gastroesophageal reflux (GERD). Methods Forty-five consecutive patients with GERD despite proton pump inhibitor treatment received laparoscopic anti-reflux surgery (LARS). 24-hour esophageal pH-monitoring (MII-pH) and esophageal manometry (HRM) data were documented preoperatively and at 3-month follow-up. Clinical symptoms were rated with the Gastrointestinal Quality of Life Index (GIQLI) and gastrointestinal symptoms were evaluated by a standardized symptom checklist (SCL), assessing the severity and intensitiy of 14 different symptoms. Simultaneous to MII-pH the collection of 3 saliva samples per patient was performed. Treatment failure was defined as improvement of GIQLI and SCL of < 10 points, despite showing a normal DeMeester score. Results At baseline, all patients showed a pathological MII-pH measurement. Furthermore, all patients showed postoperatively a normal DeMeester score (mean 7.10 ± 4.56). Ten patients were defined as treatment failures with a change of pepsin concentration from a mean value of 198.73 ng/mL to 186.00 ng/mL (p>0.05). In patients defined as treatment success, mean pepsin value decreased from 205.83 ng/mL to 85.24 ng/mL (p<0.001). Conclusion Salivary pepsin could be a marker for treatment success after LARS. However, larger studies are required to reach firm conclusions.