Reflux Redux

Barium.  This would constipate you, too.  (Wikimedia Commons)

Well I've kept this resolution for three days, so that's a new record!  Most of my resolutions have lasted about 20 minutes.  Go me!

I need to call the doctor's office and schedule a barium esophagram for Jack.  He's too old to still have reflux, and the Zantac is no longer therapeutic (he has outgrown the maximum dose) so the doctor wants to verify that it's reflux (it's so obviously reflux) and see if he needs surgery (!!!!!).  So step one is this esophagram, where they'll probably have to put a tube into his stomach to get him to drink the barium, then they'll x-ray him to see how high it goes up his esophagus, then he'll be constipated for several days as it works its way out of his system!  Fun!!  They originally scheduled it for December 22, but when I found out that he'd feel poorly for a couple of days afterwards, I postponed it.  No sense in making him sick over Christmas.

But Christmas, and my excuses, are over now.

Does anyone have any experience with this sort of thing?  I'm thinking that maybe we should skip the barium thing and go straight to a scope to visualize the damage, especially since I'm so absolutely positive that he (still) has reflux.  Thoughts?