If you have an esophagus, you’ve almost certainly experienced the occasional bout of heartburn — that painful sensation that occurs when highly acidic stomach juices splash up into the tube that ...

Gastroesophageal reflux (GER) happens when stomach contents come back up into the esophagus. Stomach acid that touches the lining of the esophagus can cause heartburn, also called acid indigestion.

Surgery that wrapped part of the stomach around the base of the esophagus to reduce acid reflux – called the Nissen Fundoplication – was once the most common remedy in serious cases, Eckhert said, but ...