Esophageal pH monitoring developed a dependable external reference electrode. Using this technique to monitor esophageal acid exposure patients for periods up to 24 hours, DeMeester and Johnson were able to identify the most important parameters of esophageal acid exposure, and they developed a composite pH score to quantify gastroesophageal reflux. The initial 24-hour pH studies required hospitalization until the introduction of microcircuits in the 1980s that allowed portable esophageal pH monitoring in an outpatient setting. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a common disease in western countries. In the United States, 7% of the population experiences heartburn daily and 44% at least once a
Immobilized pH gradient gradient instability and poor sample loading capacity associated with carrier ampholyte pH gradient. Commercial precast IPG gels are available. Immobilized pH gradient Immobilized pH gradient (IPG) gels are the acrylamide gel matrix co-polymerized with the pH gradient, which result in completely stable gradients except the most alkaline (>12) pH values. The immobilized pH gradient is obtained by the continuous change in the ratio of "Immobilines". An "Immobiline" is a weak acid or base defined by its pK value. Immobilized pH gradients (IPG) are made by mixing two kinds of acrylamide mixture, one with Immobiline having acidic buffering property and other