Title: Cricopharyngeal achalasia - MediGoo - Health Tests and Medical Info
Headings: Cricopharyngeal achalasia
Cricopharyngeal achalasia
Content: The condition is distinct from abnormalities of the normal relaxation response to the esophageal air distention and elevated resting tone. Diverse etiologies may cause the disorder, and a sequence of tests is usually necessary to confirm the diagnosis and exclude other conditions that might cause similar symptoms. Guidance on treatment options is limited due to the lack of controlled trials for the disorder as well as concern about accuracy of the diagnosis. Asherson was the first to consider the possibility that defective opening of the upper esophageal sphincter (UES) might cause swallowing problems. He describes in his study several patients with a characteristic profile radiograph of the pharynx: a hold-up of the barium bolus above the cricopharyngeus, swallowed boli which piled up in the hypopharynx forming a reservoir which acts as a «drip feed» to the esophagus. Asherson introduced the term "Cricopharyngeal achalasia" to describe this functional disturbance. He suggested that there was partial or complete failure, as well as a delay in the relaxation of the cricopharyngeal sphincter in these patients. However, Asherson gave no clear radiological description of the cricopharyngeus muscle itself. Unfortunately, the literature on cricopharyngeal achalasia has been made confusing by the lack of uniform definition of the condition.