3. Esophageal Hypersensitivity
Another esophageal cause of NCCP is esophageal hypersensitivity, which occurs when even small changes of pressure in the esophagus or tiny amounts of gastric acid refluxes. Individuals who suffer from esophageal hypersensitivity do not respond to GERD treatment that should be sufficient and often report more severe esophageal symptoms than those with other esophageal problems.
If an individual also suffers from GERD, the initial treatment that is recommended is
gastric acid suppression. In order to attempt to block pain signals from the brain, antidepressants may also be prescribed. Usually TCAs (tricyclic antidepressants) such as amitriptyline, imipramine (TofranilTM), and nortriptyline (PamelorTM) are most often prescribed as they have been researched the most when it comes to pain modulation. In less severe cases, alternating the use of TCAs and gastric acid suppression seems to be the easiest and best option.
