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Patient Credits Heartburn Treatment Center For Saving His Life

Heartburn Center of South TexasPosted on June 27, 2016 Posted in Reflux, Success Stories

“I would not be alive if it weren’t for Dr. Dill finding and repairing the hole in my esophagus from my achalasia.”

Diagnosis: Achalasia
Procedure: Heller Myotomy
Procedure Date: September 12th 2014

Success Story Benefits

No longer has to sleep sitting up!
Has more energy!
Feels like he has a second chance at life!

Matias, Matt, decided to come in and see Dr. Dill in June of 2014. He was waking up in the middle of the night and was complaining of regular regurgitation. No longer was Matt able to work out and play with his children the way he used too. Matt had low energy from not being able to sleep comfortable at night due to the heartburn and it was beginning to take a toll on his professional and personal life. The first symptoms first showed up two years ago for Matt. “I started noticing something was wrong when I was struggling to keep food down. I went to see my gastrointestinal doctor to find a solution to my problem.” After visiting his doctor he was prescribed Dexilant to tolerate his symptoms. “After eight months I stopped taking my Dexilant. I felt no different.” Months went by with his disease getting progressively worse.

Finally, Matt was talking to a friend who convinced him to go see Dr. Dill to be properly diagnosed. He even went as far as putting in Matt’s online inquiry for him! The first time Matt met Dr. Dill she ordered him to have a Esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD), ambulatory pH monitoring study, and a high resolution esophageal manometry study performed. After personally looking into his esophagus Dr. Dill diagnosed Matt with achalasia and noticed a hole progressively getting larger in his esophagus. After consulting with Dr. Patel they decided that the best procedure would be a Heller Myotomy. Discovering the hole in his esophagus was the wakeup call Matt needed to finally commit to a long term treatment solution. Matt had his procedure performed on September 12th, 2014 and was released from the hospital the same day. “I’m alive because of the surgery. I was considering the Linx procedure and at the time also moving to Colorado. Once I realized I had something seriously wrong I knew I had to stay.”

Matt is now able to do all the things he didn’t have the energy for before the procedure. Matt says that, “I am now able to sleep through the night without having to wake up and regurgitate. My life has dramatically improved after having acid reflux surgery performed. I am so happy to be able to keep up with my kids, work out, and drink lots of water.” Matt describes the staff at The Heartburn Treatment Center of South Texas as “Intense! Dr. Dill was very thorough and I am glad that I had such a smart surgeon that was able to properly diagnose and treat me.” Matt has been a great patient for Dr. Dill who is always happy to see him and the progress he is making in his everyday life. Matt continues to proclaim, “I wouldn’t be alive if it wasn’t for the surgery!”

“Dr. Dill and the Staff at The Heartburn Treatment Center of South Texas helped save my life!”

Tagged with: acid reflux treatment

Long Time GERD Patient Makes A Change To Stop Taking Medications

Heartburn Center of South TexasPosted on October 28, 2015 Posted in GERD, Heartburn, Reflux, Success Stories

“Dr. Dill is the bomb!”

Procedure & Date: Nissen
Procedure Date: June 3, 2015

Success Story Benefits

Does not have to take her Prevacid on a regular basis!
Has found a doctor she believes truly made a difference!
For the first time in her life is not suffering from GERD!

Melissa Cuellar lived with gastroesophageal reflux disease, (GERD), her entire life. Although she was not diagnosed with GERD until her mid 20’s Melissa recalls her mother saying that, “(She) just learned to live with it!’ While in her mid-twenties Melissa decided to see an array of gastroenterologist to help cope with side effects including nausea and bloating. She tried a couple different medications and saw multiple gastroenterologist and nothing helped the feeling completely go away. Eventually she decided to settle and take Prevacid on a regular basis. After months of taking Prevacid regularly Melissa said that, ‘the medication stopped working! My throat, again, felt like it was constantly on fire!’ Although she did not eat spicy foods on a regular basis Melissa still had regular heartburn.

With nothing seeming to help cure her GERD Melissa decided to do independent research on different treatment options, other than seeing a gastroenterologist regularly and taking medication daily. While driving in her car Melissa heard a radio advertisement for the Heartburn Center of South Texas. ‘I decided to give it a shot and see if Dr. Dill had any other options available to me!’ Much to her surprise there were multiple treatment options other than taking a medication every day.

After a few clinical tests and speaking with Dr. Dill they decided to have a Nissen Fundoplication performed to help Melissa treat her GERD. Melissa said that, ‘the change was miraculous!’ To her surprise two days removed from her procedure Melissa had no more acid and felt like a totally different person. Melissa describes her experience as, ‘easy, the tests got completed and there were no problems what so ever!’

Melissa made it a point to constantly speak highly of Dr. Dill, ‘My family and I could not say enough about how great Dr. Dill was, she’s the bomb!’ Melissa and was so happy with the results that even, ‘my parents are thinking about switching to Dr. Dill because they liked her so much, she was flawless!’ Melissa no longer wakes up to the feeling of her throat being on fire. Her acid is completely gone and describes Dr. Dill as, ‘a blessing!’ Melissa no longer has to tolerate all the negative side effects of her GERD because of the decision she made to come into the Heartburn Center of South Texas and speak with Dr. Dill about what all of her options are. Melissa is living life without taking her medication and without GERD! Melissa and her family could not be more pleased with the results and say that she, ‘recommends Dr. Dill to anybody who suffers from heartburn, reflux, GERD, or takes any type of medication!’ Melissa has been an ideal patient and continues to have a close relationship with the staff at the Heartburn Center of South Texas.

“The 2nd day after my Nissen was performed I had no more heartburn!”

Tagged with: GERD Treatment

Linx Procedure Allows Patient To Resume Favorite Activities

Heartburn Center of South TexasPosted on September 9, 2015 Posted in GERD, LINX, Reflux, Success Stories

“I now notice zero heartburn during the day!”

Procedure: Linx
Procedure Date: January 30th, 2015

Success Story Benefits

Is able to eat his favorite foods without concern about his acid reflux!
Able to work outside and enjoy favorite hobbies!
No longer taking his proton pump inhibitors!

Steven Huth first came in to speak with Dr. Leah Dill on November 13th 2014. At the time he was experiencing abnormally high symptoms associated with gastroesophageal reflux disease, (GERD). Steven says, “I was sleeping with 6 pillows to stay almost vertical at night and dreaded eating because of my heartburn and acid reflux!” Steven’s reflux began around eight years ago. At first it was nothing that he concerned himself over. He would continue doing his regular activities, such as working in his yard or going on hikes. However, shortly after he noticed his heartburn was worsening he began developing cavities in his mouth due to his acid going all the way up into his mouth. As Steven’s GERD increased his symptoms began to be almost unbearable. Steven would wake up in the middle of the night in pain and finally began to see a gastroenterologist to help him cope with his side-effects. After his first visit, Steven, was prescribed proton-pump inhibitors, (PPI’s) and ordered to have a scope put into his esophagus to see what the issue was. Shortly after his testing was complete it was revealed that Steven’s pyloric valve in his esophagus was completely opened! Steven’s gastroenterologist described his valve as “incompetent.” Due to this, incompetent valve, Steven’s gastroenterologist researched and suggested for him to get the Linx procedure performed. However, they did not know who would be able to perform this surgery and began researching different facilities. Eventually Steven came across Dr. Leah Dill who is one of a handful of surgeons capable of performing the Linx procedure in Texas. Right before seeing Dr. Dill Steven described his pain as, “So severe I was unable to sleep!” His PPI’s were no longer helping and was having constant pain both day and night. He knew he needed something more permanent than taking a medication every day to get back to eating his favorite foods and being as active as he once was.

Finally, the day had come where Steven was able to speak with Dr. Dill about a more permanent solution to his GERD. Steven describes Dr. Dill as, “Very knowledgeable and helped him to understand how GERD progresses. She made everything very easy and was very caring!” Steven said, “I was impressed after my first visit and knew I had a good surgeon. The office staff was also very helpful to move everything along!” One of the first things Dr. Dill ordered was a pH bravo study. This helps the doctor see how much acid goes into your esophagus over the period of two days. Steven’s initial results were in the ‘very sever’ range. A normal patient who has GERD will register a score of 14 on this test. Steven registered a 38 over the course of two days. Once learning this Steven called the office and said, “I need to get this score down into the normal range!” Steven knew he was in danger for developing esophageal cancer and on the morning of the fifteenth of January he went in to get his Linx device placed by Dr. Dill. He was nervous at first in getting the Linx placed and dealing with the recovery time but says, “I was completely out of surgical pain in 5 days and in 1 day was already off my pain medication!” His heartburn had significantly dropped and he’s feeling like, “A Bionic Man!” Determined to see the results the Linx produced Dr. Dill and Steven decided to do another pH bravo test, ‘I wanted to see the results the Linx procedure had produced both for myself and Dr. Dill!’ A couple weeks later Dr. Dill, Steven, and the entire clinic staff were shocked at the results. His score on the pH bravo test had dropped from a 38 to a 3.8 after the two day testing period was over. Steven has been the model of what The Heartburn Center of South Texas believes we can do to help patients suffering from acid reflux issues. Steve is no longer taking his PPI’s and has found a more permanent solution to his heartburn and GERD. Steven is now enjoying his favorite foods again and is a regular favorite anytime he calls any of the staff members at The Heartburn Center of South Texas.

“With Dr. Dill’s knowledge, expertise, and care I now am able to again do my favorite activities and eat my favorite foods!”

Tagged with: linx procedure

Acid Reflux Treatment Success Story for Joseph Lyons, San Antonio

Heartburn Center of South TexasPosted on May 30, 2014 Posted in Reflux, Success Stories

“Dr. Patel was very knowledgeable and friendly. He was very open about his thoughts, both positive and negative.”

Acid Reflux Treatment Success Story for Joseph Lyons, Age 44, from San Antonio

Hiatal Hernia repair for Acid Reflux on 12/18/2013

Coming from an Italian family, Joseph Lyons often felt left out when they cooked the heavy, acidic meals that Italy is best known for. A frequent sufferer of heartburn, even small pepperonis made him feel like his chest was on fire. When Joseph was in his twenties he had begun experiencing heartburn; now in his early forties his heartburn was occurring every hour on the hour. Even on his best days, with prescription medication, he would experience breakthrough heartburn within a few hours after taking.

When his heartburn first began, Joseph was in his early twenties and in the military. During this time he had a small health issue that made him take a trip to the doctor on his base, but had no idea what would happen next. The doctor prescribed him high doses of Motrin and ibuprofen, but failed to mention these medications, at such high doses, needed to be taken with a large meal. Not knowing the danger he was putting himself into, Joseph continued taking the medications prescribed to him. While on leave from the military, he ended up in the emergency room and soon found out that the medications he’d been taking had torn his stomach to shreds. Mr. Lyon’s recalled, “The doctor told me my stomach looked like your knee would if you fell down and scraped it up,” in regards to what the medications had done to his stomach. Needing to get off his current medications, he was prescribed a new daily regime of Nexium and Omeprazole in an effort to prevent his heartburn without ruining his stomach any more. He was glad to discover that by keeping the acid in his stomach under control with these medications, in time they would assist in repairing his stomach.

After nearly two decades of constant heartburn and finding it impossible to find the right mix of pills to control his acid reflux, Joseph decided to look into other options that did not include medication. He was tired of feeling left out during family meals, or having to skip on the meat lovers’ pizza when he and his friends went out; it was time to find a different solution. While browsing through Facebook one day, his eye was caught by advertisement about how heartburn could cause cancer. Fearing that he could one day be diagnosed with esophageal cancer, he turned to Dr. Patel at the Heartburn Center of South Texas.

“Dr. Patel seemed very confident that he could take care of me. I was pleasantly surprised.. Well that’s an understatement,” he recalled after meeting with Dr. Patel. Mr. Lyons had previously met with multiple doctors that just wanted to continue his medication regime rather than wanting to find and treat the source of the problem. Upon this realization, Joseph was more than eager to complete the state-of-the-art acid reflux tests that Dr. Patel ordered, so that he could finally figure out what was causing his severe discomfort. After receiving the results from his testing, Dr. Patel and Mr. Lyons together decided that the Hiatal hernia that was found through the tests would need to be fixed. Learning from Dr. Patel that a hiatal hernia can cause symptoms of heartburn, Joseph was eager to see if a simple hernia repair would decrease his acid reflux. “Dr. Patel was very knowledgeable and friendly. He was very open about his thoughts, both positive and negative,” he said, hoping that this would be the end of his twenty years of acid reflux. Mr. Lyons was once again pleasantly surprised.

Immediately after his Hiatal hernia repair, Joseph was already feeling significant relief. Within two months following his surgery, he no longer needed to take any of his daily heartburn medications! Now, after having experienced no heartburn post surgery, he finally felt normal again. “I feel like a regular person in my group of friends now,” he said after being able to eat meat lovers’ pizza with his friends on several different occasions since his surgery. Joseph is also ecstatic to finally enjoy those big Italian meals with his family, without worrying if one pepperoni would make him miserable from the pain of acid reflux. “I have experienced zero heartburn since my surgery; my life is back to normal again!”

Tagged with: acid reflux treatment

Heartburn Treatment via Linx Success Story from Amy of San Antonio

Heartburn Center of South TexasPosted on March 14, 2014 Posted in Heartburn, LINX, Reflux, Success Stories

“I have taken no medicines in over a year since the day LINX was placed.”

LINX placed on January 15, 2013

Dealing with the pain of constant heartburn for years, Amy finally decided she’d had enough when the only food she could eat comfortably was baked chicken and water. Not being able to enjoy going out to eat for lunch or plan dinner parties, without taking a large daily regime of pills, she started to think there had to be another way to live. “Every day I thought I was going to die from my heartburn,” she recalled.

Amy had seen several gastroenterologists to try to find other options rather than the multiple pills, both over the counter and prescription, which she was taking to find relief from her heartburn and acid reflux. Every gastroenterologist she visited had a similar treatment plan – more medications, better medications, newer medications, none of which suited Amy and the treatment plan she wanted. This frustration caused Amy to take matters into her own hands. Doing her own research, she found that there were surgical options to control her symptoms and came across an innovative procedure called the LINX Reflux Management System. After learning that the LINX was highly recommended by patients who’d had the procedure, and of its high success rate, she decided to look into the Heartburn Treatment Center. The Heartburn Treatment Center was one of the first exclusive centers that offered this cutting edge technology. Wanting to learn more, Amy called the Heartburn Treatment Center to set up an appointment as soon as possible.

“When I found the Heartburn Treatment Center, I actually felt somebody cared about me and understood what I was going through,” she said about the day she visited with the heartburn surgeon. “Of all the options I was offered, LINX made the most sense.” After Amy underwent a few clinical tests ordered by her surgeon, she quickly found out that she was a candidate for the Linx procedure. Elated by this, she booked the soonest appointment for the minimally invasive procedure and knew she was soon to be on her way to a life of less medications and pain.

The day of her procedure, Amy was out of the operating room within thirty minutes, and by the next day, she was back at home with no diet nor activity restrictions. “I drove three hours to have it done and I’m so glad I did,” she said about the long drive to the hospital that she was more than willing to make. Amy soon found out that her relief and time was more than worth the extra miles. At home, she tentatively began eating foods that she hadn’t been able to enjoy in years, foods other than just plain baked chicken and water, and was shocked at what she experienced. Amy could not believe that she could now eat different foods without grabbing her heartburn medications soon after consuming them. “I want everyone to have a LINX if they have heartburn,” Amy mused, illustrating how much happier she instantly was after returning home from her procedure.

Within one year of the LINX being placed, Amy had discontinued all of her heartburn medications, both over the counter and prescriptions. “I have taken no medicines in over a year since the day the LINX was placed,” she exclaimed, remembering the excitement she felt upon realizing that she hasn’t had to take a single pill for GERD, reflux or heartburn since her first day back from the hospital. “I thought there was no way I could be in love with a product,” she said, “I am with LINX because of what it’s done for me.”

Tagged with: linx heartburn treatment