Acid reflux relief without medication

Heartburn, acid reflux and GERD are all medical conditions that involve stomach acids traveling back up to the esophagus, causing general misery.

People with persistent symptoms often medicate to control acid production because chronic reflux can lead to bigger problems.

Now, there is a novel solution that can get people relief without meds.

Patrick Merritt had a burning issue that kept him churning at night. He’s one of the estimated 20 million people in this country with some form of acid reflux.

“It could wake me up in the middle of the night to where, all of a sudden, the acid had touched my throat, causing me to cough, and next thing you know, that disrupts your whole night of sleep, which then, in turn, disrupts your next day,” Merritt said.

He tried meds, even prescription drugs, to settle his stomach, assuming it would be a life-long battle.

“And then the more that I started to look into it, I’m like, listen, this isn’t normal. You’re not supposed to live this way,” Merritt said.

That’s when Fort Myers surgeon Steve Seigal entered the picture with a new option.

“The lynx is a ring of magnetic beads that we place around the sphincter on the outside of the gastroesophageal junction, and those magnets have enough strength to just augment or add a little extra squeeze or pressure to that sphincter to help prevent that acid from coming up into the esophagus,” Seigal said.

The magnetic bracelet is inserted through laparoscopic surgery and sized with enough magnetic beads to fit a patient’s anatomy.

“When you swallow, it expands and opens to let food down, and at rest, it comes back down to its natural position to give a nice squeeze to the sphincter to prevent that acid from coming up,” Seigal said.

The Linx device was an overnight success for Merritt.

“I don’t know that it’s there, except that it’s doing its job by keeping the acid reflux away. The minute he put it in is the minute my acid reflux stopped,” said Merritt.

He’s now resting easy, comfortable with his decision to seek help.