Dysphagia Flashcards
What is dysphagia?
difficulty swallowing
Where is high dysphagia and when does food get stuck?
- oropharyngeal and upper oesophageal
2. difficulty in initiating swallow or immediately upon swallowing
Where is low dysphagia and when does food get stuck?
- lower oesophageal
2. feels the food gets stuck a few seconds after swallowing
What is odynophagia?
painful swallowing
When can you get odynophagia?
- Malignancy
2. Candidiasis
What is globus?
common sensation of having lump in throat without true dysphagia
What are the functional causes of high dysphagia?
- Stroke
- Parkinson’s disease
- Myasthenia gravis
- MS
- Myotonic dystrophy
- Inadequate saliva production
What are the functional causes of low dysphagia?
- Achalasia
- Chagas disease
- Nutcracker oesophagus
- Diffuse oesophagial spasm
- Limited cutaneous scleroderma (CREST)
- Infective oesophagitis
- Eosinophilic oesopahgitis
What are the luminal (structural) causes of low dysphagia?
foreign body
What are the mural (structural) causes of high dysphagia?
- Cancer
- Pharyngeal Pouch
- Cricopharyngeal bar
What are the mural (structural) causes of low dysphagia?
- Cancer
- Stricture (caustic or inflammatory)
- Pulmmer-Vinson syndrome
- Schatzki ring
- Congenital atresia
- Post-fundoplication
What are the extrinsic (structural) causes of low dysphagia?
- Mediastinal mass
- Retrosternal goitre
- Bronchial carcinoma
- Thoracic aortic aneurysm
- Pericardial effusion
- Ortner’s syndrome
- Dysphagia Lusoria
What must you think new onset dysphagia in middle-aged to elderly patients?
carcinoma until proven otherwise
What questions fo you need to ask a patient with dysphagia related to swallowing?
- Duration of symptoms
- Is the dysphagia progressive or intermittent?
- Is the dysphagia to solids, fluids or both?
What would present immediately during a meal?
food bolus stuck in oesophagus
What does dysphagia of a short history of days to week suggest?
cancer
What does dysphagia lasting months to years suggest
chronic motility disorders e.g. achalasia
What would progressive dysphagia suggest?
stricture (benign or malignant)
What would intermittent dysphagia suggest?
motility disorder
If the patient is able to swallow fluid as normal but has difficulty with solid food (sticking) what does this suggest?
mechanical obstruction e.g. stricture
If dysphagia initially more pronounced for fluids than solids what would it suggest?
motility disorder e.g. achalasia or neuromuscular condition
What would absolute dysphagia to to solids, liquids, saliva suggest?
- food bolus stuck due to malignancy or stricture
- poorly chewed
What associated questions do you ask about in dysphagia?
- Any coughing and if so related to eating
- Suffer from halitosis
- Any gurgling or dysphonia
- Heartburn or water brash
- Weight loss
- Neurological symptoms
- Rheumatological symptoms
What would choking (coughing straight after swallowing) suggest?
coordination issue: stroke + Parkinsons
What would coughing some time after food suggest?
regurgiation of food in
- pharyngeal pouch
- achalasia
- GORD
What would nocturnal cough suggest?
achalasia
What would suffering from halitosis suggest?
food remains lodged in oropharynx e.g. Pharyngeal Pouch
What would gurgling soon after eat or drink / visible bulge in neck suggest?
pharyngeal pouch