| 摘要 |
A method of diagnosing respiratory fluid in a patient suffering from gastro esophageal reflux disease (GERD) is disclosed. The method comprises (1) orally administering to a subject suspected of suffering from gastro esophageal reflux disease (GERD), a formulation comprised of a plurality of particles comprised of a biocompatible polymer (e.g. carnauba wax) and a detectable, non-radioactive label (e.g. a fluorescent label), (2) allowing the formulation to remain in the subject over a period of time during which the subject would be expected to aspirate the formulation, (3) collecting respiratory fluid from the subject, and (4) analyzing the respiratory fluid to determine if the fluid contains the detectable label, and thereby determining if the subject regurgitates fluid into the respiratory tract. Alternatively, or additionally, a subject swallows a label that is not destroyed in the respiratory tract, or in the gastrointestinal tract, which further has the property that it is absorbed from the respiratory tract but not from the gastrointestinal tract. The presence of the label is then analyzed in blood, or, if the substance is excreted from blood to urine, in urine samples. The qualitative analysis can be also expanded into quantitative analysis, enabling the estimation of either the concentration, or the amount, or both, of the gastrointestinal contents that entered the respiratory tract.
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