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As I sit down for this interview, Dr Ahmad Sudirman Mohd Salleh asks:
“Have you heard of a condition called GERD?” I shake my head no. “Not
many are aware of it, but hopefully after reading this article, they
will be more enlightened,” he says with a smile.
Dr Ahmad Sudirman then launches straight into a disease that is
increasingly spreading throughout the world: Gastro-Esophageal Reflux
Disease, the condition where the stomach acid that helps digest food
flows back into the esophagus.
The General Surgeon at KPJ Kajang Specialist Hospital, whose
sub-specialty is the upper gastrointestinal (upper GI) tract, says GERD
happens because the muscle that works as a one-way gate for food to pass
from the esophagus to the stomach has become weak. The reflux causes an
inflammation of the coverings at the lower end of the esophagus, and
heartburn. “Unfortunately, a lot of people just assume they have gastric
and proceed to take medication for gastric, which will either provide a
temporary relief or not work at all,” explains Dr Ahmad Sudirman.
The Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia graduate, who has been practising
medicine for 17 years, is trained in all kinds of surgery except
gynaecology surgery. But what he enjoys most is being an Upper GI
surgeon. “The Upper GI is my sub-specialty. It’s a passion of mine and
I’ve given talks about it on TV to educate the masses. GI surgeons are
quite rare in Malaysia; in fact there’s only a handful [in this
specialty],” he shares.
GERD may not be a deadly disease, but it can complicate one’s daily
life, making it very uncomfortable to perform everyday tasks. The cause
of this disease can be linked to many things; straining your stomach
after a heavy meal, constricting the stomach with tight belts and
girdles, eating oily food, consuming alcohol, citrusy and spicy foods,
chronic cough or vomiting and many more.
Identifying the disease is easy. The symptoms are heartburn, a sour,
acid taste in the mouth and a stinging sensation in the chest that leads
to aching. All these symptoms will occur after meals and if left
untreated in the long run, will result in the patient having difficulty
in swallowing or, worse, stomach cancer.
“The symptoms can make someone believe they have gastric,” says Dr
Ahmad Sudirman. “When they think they have gastric, they just take some
gastric tablets, which give a temporary cure or don’t help at all. The
only way to determine if you really have GERD is to go for an endoscopy,
which will allow the surgeon to see into the esophagus and stomach. “Once I determine that it is GERD, I will start with medication. If
it’s serious or continues, then I will advise patients that it’s better
for them to have laparoscopic surgery, where I make small incisions in
their stomach to perform the surgery.
“There are only a handful of doctors that are qualified to treat this
disease and KPJ is one of the places patients can come to,” says Dr
Ahmad Sudirman, who has been with KPJ for 3½ years. “With all our
facilities, the patient will feel comfortable. Like the scoping for
instance, I will sedate patients, so they won’t feel anything. And after
surgery, I will also be keeping a constant watch on them to make sure
they are recovering well. Patients have nothing to worry about,” he says
confidently.
At the end of the day, the only thing that matters for Dr Ahmad
Sudirman is that his patients are well taken care of and that they walk
out of the hospital properly treated and healthy. “Yes, it can get
stressful at times, especially if it’s an emergency case, but when I see
my patient alive and healthy, it makes me happy and that’s the most
rewarding part about my job. That I helped in saving someone’s life,” he
says with a contented smile. |
