Staying Well

Silent reflux causes stomach acid to back up into your nasal airway, throat, and voice box and can be the reason for your chronic cough.If you have trouble breathing in, you may be one of more than 100 million Americans suffering from Laryngopharyngeal Reflux (LPR), otherwise known as silent reflux.There are two valves located at both ends of your esophagus (called a sphincter muscle) that help the contents in your stomach flow from one end to the other. However, with LPR, the sphincter muscles don't work properly and stomach acid moves back into the throat, nasal airway and voice box.Unlike acid reflux where you can feel indigestion and heartburn, the symptoms you feel if you have LPR are very different and are exactly what the name suggests: silent.Symptoms include hoarseness, postnasal drip, sinusitis, allergies, asthma, sore throat, trouble swallowing, and cough.What is enigmatic chronic cough and how is it related to LPR?An enigma is defined as something that is difficult to interpret or understand and v