Tailored modern GERD therapy – steps towards the development of an aid to guide personalized anti-reflux surgery

As the incidence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is rising, surgical treatment is continuously advancing in an effort to minimize side effects, whilst maintaining efficacy. From a database of patients that underwent anti-reflux surgery at our institution between 2015 and 2018, the last 25 consecutive patients that underwent electrical stimulation (ES), magnetic sphincter augmentation (MSA) and Nissen fundoplication (NF), following a personalized treatment decision aid, were included in a comparative analysis. After preoperative evaluation each patient was referred for an ES, MSA or NF based on esophageal motility, hiatal hernia (HH) size and the patients’ preferences. Postoperative gastrointestinal symptoms and GERD-Health-related-Quality-of-Life were assessed. Preoperatively the median DCI (299 ES vs. 1523.5 MSA vs. 1132 NF, p = 0.001), HH size (0.5 cm ES vs. 1 cm MSA vs. 2 cm NF, p = 0.001) and presence of GERD-related symptoms differed significantly between the groups. The highest rate of postoperative dysphagia was seen after MSA (24%, p = 0.04), while the median GERD HRQL total score was equally distributed between the groups. The positive short-term postoperative outcome and patient satisfaction indicate that such an aid in treatment indication, based on esophageal motility, HH size and patient preference, represents a feasible tool for an ideal choice of operation and an individualized therapy approach.