Radiologic evaluation of esophageal motility: results in 170 patients with chest pain.

Spastic esophageal motility disorders are represented, as per the Chicago classification 4.0, by diffuse esophageal spasm and hypercontractile esophagus. They are very rare and therefore poorly understood. The diagnosis is usually made by manometry in presence of dysphagia or chest pain, but often it is often an unexpected finding. In this paper, the authors review the current knowledge and possible treatments of these disorders, when needed. They underline that invasive treatments, as surgical myotomy or POEM, are rarely necessary and that the indications for them are based on low quality studies. Therefore, they should be used with extreme caution in treating spastic motility disorders other than achalasia.

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Esophageal hypersensitivity in noncardiac chest pain (NCCP), does it correlate with abnormal esophageal motility?

Gastroenterology ◽

10.1016/s0016-5085(03)81294-5 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 124 (4) ◽

pp. A258

Author(s):

Alan Savoy ◽

Hugo Bonatti ◽

Josef Klocker ◽

Cristina Achem ◽

Michael Picco ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Chest Pain ◽

Esophageal Motility ◽

Noncardiac Chest Pain ◽

Esophageal Hypersensitivity

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Esophageal Manometry with Provocative Testing in Patients with Noncardiac Angina-Like Chest Pain

Canadian Journal of Gastroenterology ◽

10.1155/1991/808793 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 5 (2) ◽

pp. 51-57 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

William G Paterson ◽

Delia A Marciano-D’Amore ◽

Ivan T Beck ◽

Laurington R Da Costa

Keyword(s):

Chest Pain ◽

Esophageal Motility ◽

Esophageal Manometry ◽

Motility Disorder ◽

Diffuse Esophageal Spasm ◽

Esophageal Motility Disorder ◽

Nutcracker Esophagus ◽

Hypertensive Lower Esophageal Sphincter ◽

Acid Perfusion ◽

Provocative Testing

In a five year period 238 of 594 esophageal manometric studies performed in the authors’ laboratory were done on patients whose major reason for referral was noncardiac angina-like chest pain. Standard eophageal manometry was performed followed by an acid-antacid perfusion period (Bernstein test) and then subcutaneous bethanechol (80 μg/kg to a maximum of 5 mg) was adminstered. Baseline manometry was normal in 38% of patients and was diagnostic of ‘nutcracker’ esophagus, nonspecific esophageal motility disorder, diffuse esophageal spasm and isolated hypertensive lower esophageal sphincter in 24%, 19%, 16% and 3% of patients, respectively. Ninety-six of 238 patients (40%) experienced reproduction of their presenting angina-like chest pain during acid perfusion. In 80% of these patients there were associated esophageal motor abnormal ilies induced by the acid perfusion. Thirty-six of 212 (17%) experienced pain reproduction following the injection of bethanechol; however, 16 of these had already had their presenting chest pain reproduced during the acid perfusion study. In two-thirds of the patients with pain reproduction following bechanechol there was an associated bethanechol-induced esophageal motility disorder. Overall 49% of patients had their pain reproduced during provocative testing. The acid perfusion test reproduced the pain much more frequently than bethanechol simulation. This study reaffirms the value of esophageal manometry and provocative testing in this group of patients.

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