Determination of ReQuest™-Based Symptom Thresholds to Define Symptom Relief in GERD Clinical Studies

Vol. 71, No. 3, 2005

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Original Paper

Determination of ReQuest-Based Symptom Thresholds to Define Symptom Relief in GERD Clinical Studies
Vincenzo Stanghellini^a, David Armstrong^b, Hubert Mönnikes^c, Peter Berghöfer^d, Gudrun Gatz^d, Karna Dev Bardhan^e

^aS. Orsola-Malpighi University Hospital, Bologna, Italy;
^bMcMaster University, Hamilton, Canada;
^cDepartment of Medicine, Division Hepatology, Gastroenterology, and Endocrinology, Charité Medical Center - Campus Virchow Hospital, Medical School of Free University and Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany;
^dALTANA Pharma AG, Constance, Germany, and
^eDistrict General Hospital, Rotherham, UK

Address of Corresponding Author

Digestion 2005;71:145-151 (DOI: 10.1159/000085564)

Key Words

Gastroesophageal reflux disease
Symptom thresholds, GERD
Symptom evaluation, GERD-related
ReQuest
Reflux questionnaire
Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale
Psychological General Well-Being scale

Abstract

Background/Aims: The growing importance of symptom assessment is evident from the numerous clinical studies on gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) assessing treatment-induced symptom relief. However, to date, the a priori selection of criteria defining symptom relief has been arbitrary. The present study was designed to prospectively identify GERD symptom thresholds for the broad spectrum of GERD-related symptoms assessed by the validated reflux questionnaire (ReQuest) and its subscales, ReQuest-GI (gastrointestinal symptoms) and ReQuest-WSO (general well-being, sleep disturbances, other complaints), in individuals without evidence of GERD. Methods: In this 4-day evaluation in Germany, 385 individuals without evidence of GERD were included. On the first day, participants completed the ReQuest, the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale, and the Psychological General Well-Being scale. On the other days, participants filled in the ReQuest only. GERD symptom thresholds were calculated for ReQuest and its subscales, based on the respective 90th percentiles. Results: GERD symptom thresholds were 3.37 for ReQuest, 0.95 for ReQuest-GI, and 2.46 for ReQuest-WSO. Conclusion: Even individuals without evidence of GERD may experience some mild symptoms that are commonly ascribed to GERD. GERD symptom thresholds derived in this study can be used to define the global symptom relief in patients with GERD.

Author Contacts

Prof. Vincenzo Stanghellini, MD
Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, University of Bologna
S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Via Massarenti 9
IT-40138 Bologna (Italy)
Tel. +39 051 636 4101, Fax +39 051 34 5864, E-Mail v.stanghellini@unibo.it

Article Information

Received: March 8, 2005
Accepted: April 19, 2005
Published online: May 4, 2005
Number of Print Pages : 7
Number of Figures : 1, Number of Tables : 3, Number of References : 19

Medline Abstract (ID 15870502)

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