16 WORLD GASTROENTEROLOGY NEWS SEPTEMBER 2015 Editorial | Expert Point of View | Gastro 2015: AGW/WGO | WDHD News | WGO & WGOF News | WGO Global Guidelines | Calendar of Events Summary of our World Digestive Health Day Event “Heartburn: Impact on Health-Related Quality of Life” Brigita Smolovic, PhD Gastroenterohepatologist Associate Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Podgorica, University of Montenegro Clinical Center of Montenegro Podgorica, Montenegro The Gastroenterohepatology Associa-tion of Montenegro celebrated World Digestive Health Day (WDHD) 2015 on 10 June. The theme was “Heart-burn: Impact on Health-Related Quality of Life.” The symposium was held in Podgori-ca, the capital of Montenegro. In the opening message, Associate Professor Brigita Smolović (Faculty of Medicine in Podgorica) informed the audience about the importance of WDHD and its goals. The Gastroenterohepatology Association of Montenegro wanted to convey the importance of gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD), and reviewed the significance of diag-nosis and treatment of GERD. One of the main goals of the meeting was to increase public awareness about the importance of improving the quality of life of these patients. The event was attended by doctors and pharmacists. They actively partici-pated in the discussion. They commit-ted to continuing work on the educa-tion of doctors in their community on the importance of improving the quality of life of their patients with GERD. Pharmacists will seek to treat patients with heartburn according to guidelines for treatment of GERD in pharmacy. The conference was attended by representatives of the medical journal “MEDICAL.” A report from the meet-ing with pictures was published in the July issue of the journal. The materials related to the guidelines about in the treatment of patients with GERD in pharmacy and recom-mendations for a healthy dietary regimen for these patients were dis-tributed to all participants. “Self-care algorithm for heartburn” adapted for the conditions in our country from the WGO Guideline “Coping with Common GI Symptoms in the Com-munity” was also distributed to all participants. A lecture was given by Dr. Velimir Milosević, PhD (Faculty of Medicine in Podgorica), on “The impact of GERD on patients’ quality of life.” The main area of interest was heart-burn, the major symptom of gastro-esophageal reflux disease, which is now considered the diagnostic criteria for this disease, whether it is with or without regurgitation. Atypical symptoms, such as cough and asthma, hoarseness, non-cardiac chest pain, dental erosions can be present. Very often, patients who have symptoms of heartburn seek to cure it alone or in consultation with the pharmacist, so several years lapse until the patient consults a doctor for help. The symptoms of heartburn associ-ated with diet and lifestyle include symptoms when lying down after a meal and symptoms at night. Patients who suffer from heartburn have a poor quality of life (physically, emotionally, and psychologically). Studies have shown that patients with GERD have reduced work activity, job productivity, lower quality of sleep, and a general decline in physical and mental health. However, the diagnosis must be careful because there are patients who have heartburn without GERD, and vice versa. This means that a patient who has heartburn, does not necessar-ily have GERD but might have other functional disorders as well as erosive esophagitis, achalasia, or many other Associated Professor Brigita Smolović, PhD, presents the opening words at the WDHD symposium. Dr. Velimir Milosević, PhD, presenting on “The impact of GERD on patients’ quality of life.”
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