The LINX Procedure

Drew:

I started getting heartburn probably around 11, 12, 13 years old, really bad, and it started getting worse as time went on, even worse and worse and worse and worse, to the point where I just couldn’t take it anymore. It was affecting every day. It was rough. I was waking up 1:00, 2:00, 3:00 in the morning. It was really hard to deal with.

Matthew W. Fabian:

You’re just exactly the type of case that I like to see come into my office because there’s a high likelihood that you’re going to be happy with the procedure to cure you of your symptoms. And that’s not a common way of thinking about gastroesophageal reflux disease. Many people are just taking Omeprazole or Prilosec or Nexium or one of the other medications, hoping that there’s another medication maybe that works better.

Drew:

Seems like I focused more on combating this acid reflux I had instead of spending time with my family and my kids, and it was affecting my everyday life.

Matthew W. Fabian:

So gastroesophageal reflux disease is a condition in which the barrier to reflux is no longer functioning properly. The LINX procedure is a chain of magnetic beads that is surgically placed around the lower esophageal sphincter to help keep that lower esophagus closed, which prevents the stomach juices from coming up into the esophagus. The LINX surgery involves laparoscopic surgery with general anesthesia, four small fingertip-sized incisions. It involves going home the same day as the operation almost every time.

Drew:

Right after the surgery, the first thing I noticed was the heartburn was gone. It’s not there anymore. Right when I walked out of here, that was amazing. I thought something was wrong. And then I was in noticeable pain for a day, maybe a day and a half. And the hardest part was, like you said, with the esophagus, was getting used to eating again. Once you figure that out, it’s amazing. I don’t even notice it anymore. I haven’t even thought about it for years. And it’s just completely changed my life, as far as no more pain. I eat what I want now, really, to an extent.

Matthew W. Fabian:

Yeah? Good. Good.

Drew:

Yeah. Thank you very much.

Matthew W. Fabian:

Oh.

Drew:

Thanks for everything. Thanks for recommending it. Yeah, it was just life-changing, really.