Korean J Med.  2009 Aug;77(2):184-186.

Upper gastrointestinal tract findings in patients with noncardiac chest pain

• Min BH
• Kim JJ

Abstract

Noncardiac chest pain (NCCP) is defined as recurring angina-like retrosternal chest pain of noncardiac origin. Although gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is recognized as the most frequent cause of this disorder, the pathophysiology remains to be elucidated fully. In Western countries, upper endoscopy has limited value in the differential diagnosis of NCCP because most of the mucosal findings detected are consistent with GERD. By contrast, in Korea the prevalence of gastric or duodenal ulcers in NCCP patients ranges from 17.9 to 20.7%. Considering this high prevalence and the different treatment strategies for GERD and peptic ulcer disease, upper endoscopy should be included in the initial work-up for NCCP in Korean patients.

Keyword

Noncardiac chest pain; Upper endoscopy; Gastroesophageal reflux disease; Peptic ulcer

MeSH Terms

Chest Pain
Diagnosis, Differential
Duodenal Ulcer
Endoscopy
Gastroesophageal Reflux
Humans
Korea
Peptic Ulcer
Prevalence
Thorax
Upper Gastrointestinal Tract