Background: Chest physiotherapy is beneficial to patients with mucus hypersecretion. However, it is not risk-free. Chest physiotherapy may affect gastrointestinal motility and the competence of the gastroesophageal sphincter during the procedure. Our study was aimed to investigate whether gastroesophageal reflux is exacerbated or induced by chest physiotherapy.
Materials and methods: Thirty-two adult patients with chronic bronchitis or bronchiectasis received chest physiotherapy. An esophageal pH meter was placed 5 cm above the gastroesophageal junction and monitored the reflux episodes from 8 AM on the first day to 12 noon on the second day. Physiotherapy was performed with the patient in three different positions on the second day for one hour.
Results: Thirteen patients were found to have gastroesophageal reflux disease. For the study group as a whole, neither the frequency nor the duration of having a pH < 4 during the physiotherapy was significantly different from the mean hourly frequency and mean hourly duration recorded on the first day or from those values recorded at a corresponding time on the first day. As for the patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease, the frequency and total duration of gastroesophageal reflux during physiotherapy were not significantly different from the mean hourly frequency and the mean hourly duration or from the values recorded at the corresponding time on the first day. There was no significant difference in the gastroesophageal reflux frequency or the duration in different body positions.
Conclusion: Chest physiotherapy including postural drainage, percussion and forced expiration techniques in different positions did not induce or increase the incidence of gastroesophageal reflux in patients with chronic bronchitis and bronchiectasis.