CureusOct 23, 2020

How Common Acid Reflux Is and Its Risk Factors Among Adults at a Primary Health Center in Makkah, 2020

Circadian Biology Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated Apr 3, 2026

Abstract

In a sample of 339 participants, 17.4% were diagnosed with asymptomatic gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).

The mean age of participants was 39.5 years, with ages ranging from 18 to 84 years.
Male participants constituted 72.9% of the sample, while females made up 27.1%.
Statistical analysis identified several factors associated with an increased risk of symptomatic GERD, including family history, divorce, smoking, and dietary habits.
Specific foods such as tomatoes and salty items, as well as the consumption of acidic drinks and frequent use of pain-relief medications, were linked to higher GERD risk.
The findings suggest that modifiable lifestyle factors may significantly influence the prevalence of GERD in the population studied.

Simplified

Globally, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) has a potentially high prevalence, with a wide rate of variability across different populations due to inconsistency in the risk factors. Hence, a cross-sectional study was conducted using a self-administered, structured questionnaire at Al-Iskan Primary Health Care (PHC) Center to investigate the prevalence rate and associated factors in Makkah Almukarramah, the west of Saudi Arabia. The study included 339 participants. The mean age for participants was 39.5 ± 15.5 years, and the range was from 18 to 84 years. Male participants were 247 (72.9%) and females were 92 (27.1%). Participants were diagnosed with GERD on achieving a GERD questionnaire score of ≥8. In our sample, 59 (17.4%) were diagnosed with asymptomatic GERD. The represented logistic regression shows that family history of GERD, marital status (divorce), smoking, physical activity frequency, tomatoes/tomato-based foods, salty foods, acidic drinks, frequent use of analgesics, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) consumption shows statistical significance and association (P < 0.05) with increased risk of symptomatic GERD. Conclusively, the results show that GERD is prevalent in Makkah with the presence of modifiable risk factors which can significantly affect the ascendency of the disease.

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Funding

Competing interests

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

PubMed

How Common Acid Reflux Is and Its Risk Factors Among Adults at a Primary Health Center in Makkah, 2020

Abstract

Full Text

Funding

Competing interests

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