Method and apparatus for intra-esophageal cough detection.

Gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a common cause of chronic cough. However, a low-cost diagnostic tool for linking GERD and cough in a cause and effect relationship is still lacking. In the present study, an intra-esophageal cough detection probe that comprises a miniature white-light interferometric fiber optic pressure sensor is proposed. This innovative catheter provides a custom encapsulation of the pressure sensor which specifically optimizes the sensitivity to pressure responses triggered by cough events. In vitro and in vivo testing results of the initial cough detection probe are presented. Experimental results demonstrated the feasibility of using the proposed catheter for identifying cough episodes. The presented work can be integrated with commercial reflux pH/impedance probes to facilitate simultaneous 24-hour ambulatory monitoring of cough and reflux events, with the ultimate goal of quantifying the temporal correlation between the two types of events.