A Case of Aerophagia Diagnosed by Multichannel Intraluminal Impedance Monitoring

Ki Chang Sohn; Young Hoon Jeong; Dong Ho Jo; Won Gak Heo; Dong Han Yeom; Suck Chei Choi; Han Seung Ryu

doi:10.4166/kjg.2015.66.5.282

Journal List > Korean J Gastroenterol > v.66(5) > 1007444

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Sohn, Jeong, Jo, Heo, Yeom, Choi, and Ryu: A Case of Aerophagia Diagnosed by Multichannel Intraluminal Impedance Monitoring

Case Report

Korean J Gastroenterol 2015;66(5):282-285.

Published online: 4 October 2015

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4166/kjg.2015.66.5.282

A Case of Aerophagia Diagnosed by Multichannel Intraluminal Impedance Monitoring

Ki Chang Sohn, Young Hoon Jeong, Dong Ho Jo, Won Gak Heo, Dong Han Yeom, Suck Chei Choi, Han Seung Ryu

Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Digestive Disease Research Institute, Wonkwang University College of Medicine, Iksan, Korea

Correspondence to: Han Seung Ryu, Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Wonkwang University Hospital, 895 Muwang-ro, Iksan 54538, Korea. Tel: +82-63-859-2563, Fax: +82-63-855-2025, E-mail: hanseung@wonkwang.ac.kr

Received 8 June 2015 Revised 25 June 2015 Accepted 26 June 2015

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Aerophagia is a disorder caused by abnormal accumulation of air in the gastrointestinal tract as a result of repetitive and frequent inflow of air through the mouth. For the diagnosis of this condition, it is difficult to objectively measure the air swallowing. However, multichannel intraluminal impedance monitoring facilitates the differential diagnosis between normal air swallowing and pathologic aerophagia, and can aid in the determination of the frequency and amount of air swallowed. In this report, in addition to a literature review, we describe a case of 36-year-old man with abdominal distension who was diagnosed with aerophagia using esophageal impedance monitoring and was treated with clonazepam.

Keywords: Aerophagy, Electric impedance, Clonazepam

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Fig. 1.

Plain abdominal X-ray findings.(A) Excessive amounts of gas is observed in the stomach and intestine without any signs of obstruction. (B) After clonazepam treatment, gaseous distension of the small intestine and colon is improved.

Fig. 2.

Findings of multichannel intraluminal impedance monitoring. (A) Integral images were collected over twenty-three hours and analyzed for intraluminal impedance. The graph indicates multiple high peaks of impedance of more than 1,000 Ω above baseline measurements, especially during the daytime hours. (B) Swallowed air moves in the antegrade direction and aborally in the most distal impedance segment. (C) A gastric belch (dashed arrows), characterized by an increase in impedance that moves in the oral direction, is noted before an air swallow (solid arrows).

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