Swallowing Difficulty & Related Esophageal Diseases

Difficulty swallowing (Dysphagia) refers to the feeling of a food bolus or foreign objects being stuck in the food pipe (Esophagus) and extra effort needed to move food or liquid from the mouth to the stomach. This may be a symptom of a serious condition that would require medical attention. Dysphagia can be associated with pain, hoarseness, weight loss, regurgitation or vomiting.

Dysphagia can affect both men and women and can occur at any age, but it’s more common in older adults. There is verity of causes for swallowing disorders. Generally, a benign or malignant blockage or impaired mobility of throat or esophageal muscles can result in dysphagia.

A list of conditions that can be the cause of dysphagia include:

• GERD
• Esophageal stricture
• Eosinophilic esophagitis
• Zenker diverticula
• Achalasia
• Esophageal spasm
• Esophageal stricture
• Esophageal tumors
• Foreign bodies
• Esophageal ring
• Scleroderma
• Stricture caused by radiation therapy
• Neuromuscular disorders

We offer the following diagnostic and therapeutic services

• Upper endoscopy with dilation
• Endoscopic ultrasound
• Manometry
• pH-Impedance
• Endoflip
• Zenker myotomy
• POEM