Description

Patients who fulfill the inclusion criteria and, after informed consent, are willing to participate in this study will be prepared for ARMA. After sedation the patients will be randomized equally into an intervention and control Group. The patients are blinded to the procedure. The Patients in the intervention group receive ARMA using argon plasma coagulation (APC) at the gastroesophageal junction (EGJ) in two semicircular patterns while the control group receives a sham procedure. The approximate duration of the procedure is 30min. After the procedure the patients receive follow up controls at 2, 4, 6 and 12 months. During the first follow up, 2 months after the procedure symptoms are evaluated by questionnaires (GERDHRQL, FSSG, VAG). Subsequently the PPI- medication is stopped in all patients until the end of the study or worsening of symptoms. During the second follow up 4 months after the initial procedure the symptoms are reevaluated by questionnaires. The patients are then unblinded and are told if they received ARMA or sham procedure. Those patients who received ARMA are examined by esophagogastroduodenoscopy, esophageal manometry and pH metry. Further assessments is performed by questionnaires 6 and 12 months after the initial procedure.

Those patients in the control group are allowed to take part in a crossover to receive the ARMA procedure as well. If they receive ARMA, symptoms are reevaluated 2 months after the procedure by questionnaires, esophagogastroduodenoscopy, esophageal manometry and pH metry. Further controls are performed after 4, 6 and 12 months by questionnaires.