How to Detect Acid Reflux

Jennifer Matthews: Darlene VanHoose loves her pizza. But it doesn't love her. Darlene VanHoose: I would have coughing spasms because of the acid coming up into my throat. Just a general miserable feeling. Jennifer Matthews: Dan Lamar knows her pain! Dan Lamar: I couldn't breathe. I literally was having shortness of breath. My vocal chords were so inflamed that they were constricting my airways. Jennifer Matthews: For both Dan and Darlene, their acid reflux was more than just a little heartburn. But it was misdiagnosed time and time again. Until now, there was no good way to detect it. Through the new Restech device, Dr. Ronald Simon, can detect acid reflux much more easily. And it's more comfortable for the patient. A thin tube is connected to a transmitter. Dr. Ronald Simon: Amazingly, at the end of this tube, there's a tiny little bulb. Jennifer Matthews: The bulb is a pH meter. It's inserted into the nose, resting in the back of the throat. The pH meter on the end of the tube picks up any signs of acid. Dr. Ronald Simon: This plots all the acid data on a graph and we know exactly when they were eating, when they were upright, when they were sleeping so we can correlate when the acid is in their throat and what is happening in their life. Jennifer Matthews: It's worn for 24 hours or less -- every moment logged by a touch of a button. The Restech device helped diagnose Lamar's acid reflux. With a few lifestyle and nutritional changes, he's feeling much better. Dan Lamar: Walking around campus, I'm not short of breath. Jennifer Matthews: A life-changing device that could help millions get the treatment they need. This is Jennifer Matthews reporting.