BACKGROUND Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is a chronic and a common condition worldwide which causes mild to severe symptoms. Private tuition attendees are a group which could have potential risk factors for GORD. Therefore, we aimed to determine the prevalence, associated factors and medication for symptoms related to GORD among advanced level private-tuition attendees of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. METHODS A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among students aged ≥18 years. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Students scoring ≥ eight on the Frequency Scale for Symptoms of GORD were categorised to have symptoms related to GORD. Logistic regression was performed to determine the significant association between the variables of interest and the presence of symptoms related to GORD (P < 0.05). RESULTS Data of 1114 students were included for the analysis. A high prevalence of symptoms related to GORD (52% - 580/1114) was noted. Heartburn received the highest score among GORD symptoms. Biology students had the highest prevalence of GORD symptoms (63% - 127/201). Also, Biology students had the highest percentage for the utilisation of overall (17% - 35/201) and prescribed (13% - 27/201) medication for GORD symptoms. Presence of symptoms related to GORD was significantly associated with female sex [OR - 0.436 (95% CI 0.342-0.555)], being boarded [OR - 2.021 (95% CI 1.325-3.083)], chronic illness [OR - 2.632 (95% CI 1.439-4.813)], midnight snack [OR - 1.776 (95% CI 1.379-2.287)], frequent lack of breakfast [OR - 2.145 (95% CI 1.688, 2.725)], quick eating [OR - 1.394 (95% CI 1.091-1.780)] and inadequate sleep [OR - 2.077 (95% CI 1.624-2.655)]. CONCLUSION A high prevalence of symptoms related to GORD in comparison to previous literature was found among private tuition attendees. Possible reasons for the above findings were discussed.

中文翻译：

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斯里兰卡阿努拉德普勒州的1114名私人补习学生中与胃食管反流疾病相关的症状的患病率，相关因素和药物治疗。

背景技术胃食管反流病（GORD）是一种慢性疾病，在世界范围内普遍存在，会引起轻度至严重的症状。私人补习参与者是可能对GORD构成潜在风险因素的群体。因此，我们旨在确定斯里兰卡阿努拉德普勒的高级私人补习参与者中与GORD相关的症状的患病率，相关因素和用药。方法对≥18岁的学生进行描述性横断面研究。使用自行管理的调查表收集数据。在GORD症状频率量表中得分≥8的学生被归类为与GORD相关的症状。进行逻辑回归以确定感兴趣的变量和与GORD相关的症状的存在之间的显着相关性（P <0.05）。结果纳入了1114名学生的数据进行分析。注意到与GORD相关的症状普遍存在（52％-580/1114）。胃灼热在GORD症状中得分最高。生物学学生的GORD症状患病率最高（63％-127/201）。此外，生物学专业的学生对GORD症状的总体使用率最高（17％-35/201），而处方药的使用率最高（13％-27/201）。与GORD相关的症状的存在与女性显着相关[OR-0.436（95％CI 0.342-0.555）]，被登机[OR-2.021（95％CI 1.325-3.083）]，慢性病[OR-2.632（95 ％CI 1.439-4.813），午夜零食[OR-1.776（95％CI 1.379-2.287）]，经常缺乏早餐[OR-2.145（95％CI 1.688、2.725）]，速食[OR-1.394（95 ％CI 1.091-1.780）和睡眠不足[OR-2.077（95％CI 1.624-2。655）]。结论与以前的文献相比，私人补习参与者中与GORD相关的症状普遍存在。讨论了上述发现的可能原因。