Does esophageal function vary at the striated and smooth muscle segments in functional chest pain?
Although in most patients the esophagus is uniformly hypersensitive, in some either the smooth muscle or the striated muscle segment can be hypersensitive. If considering balloon distention at only one level, we recommend balloon placement at 10 cm above the lower esophageal sphincter because of a higher yield of hypersensitivity.
This study provides representative socioeconomic group-specific prevalence data on a total of 35 clinical entities for the Federal Republic of Germany. Although the self-reporting involved in large epidemiological studies of this kind is associated with a certain amount of bias, it is nonetheless clear that the frequently cited "socioeconomic gradient", i. e., a higher disease prevalence among lower socioeconomic groups, seems not to apply for numerous disease entities; for which the association seems to be in the opposite direction. This phenomenon requires explanation.