Structure and Function of the Gastro-esophageal Junction

Inclusion criteria:

Study #1:

• healthy male and female volunteers
• aged at least 18 and not more than 49 y
• no history of gastrointestinal symptoms
• able to communicate well with the investigators and to comply with the requirements for the entire study
• who provided written informed consent before participating in the study, after being given a full description of the trail.

Study #2 and #3:

• male and female patients with mild to moderate gastro-oesophageal reflux disease defined by presence of (1) reflux symptoms (2) pathological esophageal acid exposure between 5-10% on 24 hour ambulatory testing
• aged at least 18 and not more than 49 y
• no history of gastrointestinal symptoms
• able to communicate well with the investigators and to comply with the requirements for the entire study
• who provided written informed consent before participating in the study, after being given a full description of the trail.

Exclusion criteria:

• with present psychiatric disorders or mental impairment limiting the ability to comply with study requirements
• with use of medications influencing upper GI motility within one week of the study (i.e. beta- blocker, calcium channel blockers, nitrates, prokinetic drugs, macrolide antibiotics)
• with regular intake of medication; occasional use of analgesic e.g. aspirin, paracetamol is allowed
• with symptoms or a history of gastrointestinal disease other than gastro-esophageal reflux disease (in study #2 and #3)
• suffering from known liver, kidney, cardiovascular, neurological or pulmonary disease
• with any evidence of infectious disease
• with evidence or history of drug or alcohol abuse
• with insufficient knowledge of the German language • who, for any reason, are unable to complete the study