Heartburn in Spanish

What it means

Heartburn is a painful burning feeling in the chest or throat, often felt just below or behind the breastbone. It happens when stomach acid backs up into the esophagus, the tube that carries food from the mouth to the stomach. Pregnancy, certain foods, alcohol, and some medications can bring it on, and heartburn more than twice a week may be a sign of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Heartburn that comes with other symptoms such as crushing chest pain could be a heart attack and needs immediate help.

Spanish term: Acidez estomacal
Gender and article: feminine: la acidez estomacal
Pronunciation: ah-see-DESS ess-toh-mah-KAHL

Other Spanish terms	Where it is used	Note
Agruras	Mexico	Everyday word for heartburn; the Spanish academies' dictionary notes that in Mexico it is used only in the plural (las agruras).
Agrura	Cuba, Dominican Republic, Central America, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia	Singular form; the Diccionario de americanismos marks it for Cuba and the Dominican Republic, and also for Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia.
Pirosis	General	The medical term (feminine: la pirosis), listed by MedlinePlus en español as another name for acidez estomacal.
Acidez gástrica	General	The title the MedlinePlus Spanish medical encyclopedia uses for its heartburn article.

MedlinePlus en español titles its heartburn page Acidez estomacal and then simply says la acidez in running text. On its own, acidez is a feminine noun that can mean sourness in general, so estomacal, gástrica or de estómago is added when the meaning needs to be clear on a form or chart.

Pirosis is the formal medical word, labeled as a medical term in the Spanish academies' dictionary; expect it in records rather than in conversation. Patients from Mexico may say agruras instead, always in the plural. Spanish health materials shorten GERD to ERGE (enfermedad por reflujo gastroesofágico).

Phrases for an appointment

What a patient or a clinician might say, in English and Spanish:

Who	English	Spanish
Clinician	What brings you in today?	¿Qué lo trae hoy por aquí?
Patient	I have a burning feeling in my chest that goes up into my throat.	Siento un ardor en el pecho que me sube hasta la garganta.
Clinician	How many times a week do you get heartburn?	¿Cuántas veces por semana le da acidez?
Patient	Almost every day, and it gets worse when I lie down after eating.	Casi todos los días, y empeora cuando me acuesto después de comer.
Clinician	Do you have trouble swallowing, or does food come back up?	¿Tiene dificultad para tragar o se le regresa la comida?
Patient	Sometimes I wake up at night with a sour taste in my mouth.	A veces me despierto de noche con un sabor agrio en la boca.
Clinician	I would like to order a test to look at your esophagus and stomach.	Quisiera pedirle un examen para revisarle el esófago y el estómago.
Patient	Could one of the medicines I take be causing the heartburn?	¿Alguna de las medicinas que tomo podría estar causándome la acidez?

In 9 languages

Language	Term
English	Heartburn
Spanish (Español)	Acidez estomacal
Chinese (中文)	胃灼熱
Korean (한국어)	속쓰림
Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt)	Ợ nóng
Filipino (Tagalog)	Sikmura
Portuguese (Português)	Azia
Thai (ภาษาไทย)	อาการเสียดท้อง
Japanese (日本語)	胸焼け

Where you'll see it

chartintake formmedical record

Related ICD-10-CM category

ICD-10-CM code: R12 → Heartburn

Related terms

Your right to an interpreter in the United States

If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating in English, you may need an interpreter or a translated document when you visit a doctor or dentist, go to the emergency room or pick up a prescription. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights states that two federal laws, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, require programs that receive its funding to provide language access services free of charge.

You can ask when you make the appointment or at the front desk: "I need an interpreter, please." «Necesito un intérprete, por favor.»

More terms: Digestive system

All terms in this area: Digestive system — Sistema digestivo

Sources

This page is a language reference. It is not medical advice.