CORRELATION OF LARYNGEAL AND PHARYNGEAL CARCINOMAS AND 24-HOUR PH MONITORING OF THE ESOPHAGUS AND PHARYNX

The cause of laryngeal and pharyngeal carcinomas is likely multifactor ial. Smoking is an important factor, but mucosal damage from gastroeso phageal reflux may also contribute. The purpose of this study was to d etermine whether gastroesophageal reflux is more common in patients wi th laryngeal or pharyngeal carcinomas than in those without these mali gnancies, Over an 8-year period, we correlated the results of clinical and radiographic examinations of the pharynx and esophagus to pH moni toring results in 798 patients with a variety of upper aerodigestive t ract symptoms and who underwent both pH monitoring and barium esophago graphy, In this group, 63 patients (52 men, 11 women) had laryngeal or pharyngeal carcinomas, and 735 patients (319 men, 416 women) had neit her malignancy. Abnormal pH findings were defined as a total percentag e of esophageal acid exposure time of 6% or more as determined with th e esophageal probe, or any reflux event detected with the pharyngeal p robe, Thirty-four of 63 patients with carcinomas (54%) had abnormal pH -monitoring results: Esophageal acid exposure was abnormal in 10 patie nts, pharyngeal acid exposure was abnormal in 7 patients, and acid exp osure was abnormal in both areas in 17 patients. Of the 735 patients w ithout malignancies, 365 (50%) had abnormal pH-monitoring results (p > 0.05). In this population of patients, abnormal results of pH monitor ing were common, occurring in 399 (50%) of 798 patients, but no signif icant difference was found between results in those with and without l aryngeal or pharyngeal carcinomas, Therefore, our study found that gas troesophageal reflux as shown by pH monitoring was not more common in patients with these malignancies.