Outpatient Experience of Patients with GERD in the United States: Analysis of the 1998–2001 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey

This study documents the number of ambulatory visits associated with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in the United States. Sample data from nearly 80,000 patients captured by the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS; 1998–2001) were analyzed. Basic demographics of patients with GERD and factors associated with each visit were assessed. Approximately 38.53 million of 2.653 billion adult outpatient visits made in the United States during the study period were GERD-related. GERD-related visits increased by 46.5% from 1998 to 2001. Most GERD-related visits were by women (54.7%) with an average age of 56.0 years, compared with patients without GERD, who were even more likely to be women (62.2%) and younger (52.6 years). Patients with GERD were more likely to have multiple reasons (50.5%) and multiple diagnoses (79.3%) per medical visit versus non-GERD patients (37.6% and 48.4%, respectively). Utilization of data from the NAMCS reveals that GERD-related visits increased annually during the study period. Patients with GERD are more likely to see a physician if they have concomitant medical conditions, making GERD a condition that is very likely untreated in a high percentage of individuals.