“Assess the Risk Factors of Gerd among the Students at Selected Institute.”

Abstract

Background of the study: Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) is a chronic condition in which the backflow of stomach acid into the esophagus causes symptoms like heartburn, chest pain, and difficulty swallowing. GERD occurs when the ring of muscle that separates the esophagus and stomach, called the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), becomes weak or relaxes abnormally, allowing stomach acid to flow back up into the esophagus, leading to inflammation and damage. GERD affects millions of people worldwide and can have a significant impact on quality of life if left untreated.

Objectives of the study were to assess the risk factors of GERD and to find out the association between risk factors of GERD with selected demographic variables.

METHOD: Non experimental descriptive study was conducted among 291 students of selected Institutes. They were selected by random sampling technique. The structured risk factors questionnaire was used for the assessing the level of risk for GERD. The collected data was analyzed and interpreted based on descriptive statistics and inferential statistics.

RESULTS: This research study reveals that the frequency and percentage distribution of various demographic variables among a sample population for the age category of 18-20 years , the frequency is 157 and percentage is 54%, for category of more than 20 years of age, the frequency is 134 and percentage is 46%.In the criteria of gender, the categories are Male, Female and Transgender the following frequency are 97 for male, 194 for female and no any transgender and the following percentage are 33.3% for male, 66.7% for female .The following frequency for criteria of living are 104 for hosteller and the percentage is 35.7%, Day scholar the frequency is 187 and percentage is 64.1%.The area of living categories are Rural and Urban, following frequency for rural is 116 and the percentage is 39.9% and for urban frequency is 175 and the percentage is 60.1%.For the religion categories are the following frequency is 208 for Hindu, 54 for Muslims, 15 for Christian, 14 for other. And the percentage are 71.5% for Hindu, 18.6% for Muslims, 5.2% for Christian, 4.8%for other. In the educational criteria categories are Science

,Commerce ,Arts and the following frequency is 214,39,38 and the percentage are 73.5%,13.4%,13.1%In education criteria categories Under graduate, post graduate .The following frequency are 112,179 and the percentage are 38.5%,61.5%.In Weight categories are 30-50kg,51-70kg,71-90kg.for above 90kg.The following frequency are 128,146,16,1 and the percentage are 44%,50.2%,5.5%,0.3%.For height the criteria are 120-140cm,141-160cm,161- 180cm,above 180cm the following frequency are 10,165,100,16 and the percentage are 3.4%,56.7%,34.4%,5.5%.The study level regarding risk of GERD among the selected Institute provide a detailed breakdown of the frequency and percentage distribution of the risk associated with Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease(GERD) among the student population surveyed having the low level of risk for GERD (0-7) in the frequency is 213 and the percentage is 73.2%. For moderate risk for GERD (8-14) the frequency is 74 and the percentage is 25.4%. For severe risk for GERD (15-21) the frequency is 4 and the percentage is 1.4%.Similarly, this result presents the association between risk factors of Gastro esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) and selected demographic variables. It displays the relationship between the level of risk for GERD (categorized as low, moderate and severe) and various demographic factors such as age, gender ,hostel/day scholar status ,area of living(rural/urban) , religion, education level ,weight ,height.