Old man stuff – endoscopy

[Anquetil]

Where the oesophagus goes down it passes the diaphragm through a gap called the hiatus. Below this it goes into the stomach. The hiatus causes a narrowing of the opening into the stomach and helps prevent stomach contents from going upwards, which is called reflux. If the hiatus is weak reflux of acidic digestive juices into the oesophagus occurs. Depending on individual circumstances there is an operation to tighten the hiatus area, but controlling reflux with medication and lifestyle modifications is usually the route taken by GP's.