The pain of heartburn

middle-aged moderately overweight woman visited the clinic with a persistent cough that had been gradually worsening over the last few months. She had been to the GP and initially given antibiotics thinking it was a lung problem, but they had made her symptoms worse. She felt her lungs were good (and a chest X-ray had been clear), but she had noticed that some foods made the cough worse. She also at times had a burning feeling in the middle of her chest that was worse when she was lying down and particularly severe after a big