BOSTON -- If you don't suffer from acid reflux, chances are good someone you know may. One in five Americans has it, and it can be a burning burden.

But as NewsCenter 5's Heather Unruh reported Thursday, a new incisionless procedure being offered at only one local hospital could offer relief.

"I always describe it as a volcano that just comes up. It's just this burning sensation," Valerie Sullivan, of Millis, Mass.

For 15 years, Sullivan lived with the burning burden of acid reflux. She tried every type of antacid medication, but the pain never went away.

"It doesn't fix the problem," she said.

The problem, in Sullivan's case, was an incompetent valve that washed the acid back up into her esophagus.

"And then it starts causing burning and irritation," said Dr. Hiran Fernando, director of minimally invasive thoracic surgery at Boston Medical Center.

But surgeons at Boston Medical Center are now repairing the valve in acid reflux patients with a procedure that requires no incisions.

"We're the first team to do the procedure in New England," said Dr. Miguel Burch, co-director of esophageal and acid reflux at Boston Medical Center.

While the patient is asleep, the EsophyX TIF (transoral incisionless fundaplication), and endoscope are inserted through the mouth. It forms and fastens tissue folds to create a new valve.

"This is what a good valve looks like," Fernando said. "You make acid, but it doesn't reflux back."

After the procedure, about 80 percent of patients don't need medication anymore to relieve their pain.

"I don't have to take my medication at all. I don't have to think about what I'm eating," Sullivan said.

Doctors stress the procedure is for people who either don't want to take pills anymore, or don't want traditional surgery. But it is not for everyone with acid reflux.

"Some patients, the best thing for them is going to be an operation. For other patients, the best thing for them is the medications," Burch said.

The procedure takes less than an hour. Doctors say it is safer than traditional surgery that requires cutting. There are side effects, including soreness in the throat.