Most people have or will experience heartburn occasionally. With all the different heartburn classifications out there, diagnosis and prevention can be confusing. Hi, I’m Dr. Frank McGeorge for Prilosec OTC, and today we’re going to discuss the differences between heartburn, frequent heartburn, acid reflux, and GERD. Let’s start with the basics. Heartburn refers to a burning discomfort that’s generally felt in the chest, just behind the breastbone. Now, this sensation results when harsh stomach acid comes in contact with, and irritates, the lining of the esophagus—that’s the tube-like structure that connects the mouth to the stomach. Now, there are varying degrees of heartburn that one can experience. Heartburn experts tend to use three categories to describe heartburn frequency: episodic, frequent, and persistent. On the less severe end of the spectrum is episodic or occasional heartburn, which refers to infrequent flare-ups that are fairly predictable. Now, heartburn that occurs two or more days a week is referred to as frequent heartburn. If you’re experiencing symptoms this regularly, you may want to consider taking a more proactive approach to treating the problem, rather than treating your symptoms each time they occur. Now, there are a number of heartburn medications available to treat frequent heartburn. Proton pump inhibiting, or PPI medications, like Prilosec OTC, work by directly blocking many of your stomach’s acid-producing pumps. Now, PPI may take one to four days for full effect, but it can provide zero heartburn for 24 hours with just one pill a day. Now, another commonly confused and highly searched term associated with heartburn is acid reflux. This is the term used to describe the action of the stomach’s acidic contents actually being pushed up into the esophagus. In other words, acid reflux is the action which causes the symptom. Separate and often confused with other categories of heartburn is gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD. This digestive disorder is caused by acid contents of the stomach regularly backing up into the esophagus. It’s the added presence of regurgitation or refluxing, difficulty swallowing, chronic cough, hoarseness, and a feeling of a lump in the throat that differentiates this digestive symptom set from heartburn, frequent heartburn, or even persistent heartburn condition. The difference is that GERD is a disease, and heartburn is its most common symptom. If you think you may have GERD, contact your doctor to discuss your symptoms. For more information on the causes and remedies for heartburn, be sure to watch our other videos. I’m Dr. Frank McGeorge for Prilosec OTC.