The Role of Antidepressant Pain Modulators in Managing Esophageal Hypersensitivity and Refractory Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease: A Comprehensive Review

Yasmeen Alnajar

doi:10.37547/tajmspr/Volume07Issue03-10

Articles | Open Access | DOI: https://doi.org/10.37547/tajmspr/Volume07Issue03-10

The Role of Antidepressant Pain Modulators in Managing Esophageal Hypersensitivity and Refractory Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease: A Comprehensive Review

Yasmeen Alnajar , Master’s in Biomedical Science, New York Medical College, 40 Sunshine Cottage Rd Valhalla, NY 10595, USA.

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Published Date 2025-03-17

Pages 57-79

Abstract

The symptoms of esophageal hypersensitivity and refractory gastroesophageal reflux disease (rGERD) become aggressive clinical targets for treatment even when patients have the most effective acid suppression therapy. Science now supports antidepressant pain modulators such as tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) as potential therapeutic medications because they control esophageal nociceptive signals and central pain signals within the brain. This extensive review examines the functional roles which these treatments perform when treating esophageal hypersensitivity along with rGERD and conducts an assessment of their effectiveness and security data with clinical implications. The review analyzed findings from randomized controlled trials and meta-analyses and observational studies which were published in prestigious journals. The evaluations based on statistics demonstrated how antidepressants as pain modulators perform against standard GERD therapies while assessing symptom control along with life quality benefits and potential side effects in patients. The review examines visceral pain modulation neurophysiology to demonstrate potential treatment approaches for individual patients. Studies reveal that TCA medications together with SSRI medications successfully decrease esophageal pain experiences from central nervous system and peripheral nervous system mechanisms while offering better treatment outcomes to PPI non-responsive patient populations. Clinical research involving low-dose antidepressants showed both statistically relevant improvements in heartburn severity scores as well as pain intensity measurements from the chest area for treatment participants. More research needs to address safety questions and ideal medications doses along with long-term safety matters. The research demonstrates how antidepressant pain modulators serve as promising complementary therapies for treating esophageal hypersensitivity and rGERD while recommending new treatment approaches. Future research needs to improve selection criteria for patients while discovering the most effective treatment plans and increasing evidence-based applications for better clinical results. These research outcomes enable the advancement of comprehension regarding neurogastroenterology critical connection with psychopharmacology thus producing new multidisciplinary treatment models.

Keywords

Antidepressant pain modulators, Esophageal hypersensitivity, Refractory gastroesophageal reflux disease, Tricyclic antidepressants, Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors

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