Dysphagia causes

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Feham Tariq, MD [2]Kiran Singh, M.D. [3]

Overview

Dysphagia has a couple of categories of causes which can be classified on the basis of location and the organ system involved.

Causes

Dysphagia has a couple of categories of causes which can be classified on the basis of location and the organ system involved.

Common Causes of Oropharyngeal Dysphagia

Common causes of oropharyngeal dysphagia
Neurological causes	Medications	Other causes
Stroke Parkinson's disease Occulopharyngeal dystrophy Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Myasthenia gravis	Sedatives Hypnotic agents anticonvulsants neuroleptics antihistamines barbiturates Antiseizure medication Medications can also cause peripheral nervous system effects resulting in an oropharyngeal dysphagia. Examples: corticosteroids, tetracycline, L-tryptophan, and anticholinergics.	Radiotherapy of the head and neck Pharyngitis Cervical web or rings Dental problems Oral candidiasis Tetanus Lead poisoning Rabies

Common causes of Esophageal Dysphagia

The common causes of esophageal dysphagia can be divided into four categories.

• An imbalance between inhibitory and excitatory neurons of the myenteric plexus at the distal oesophageal sphincter.
• There is a decrement in inhibitory innervation (nitrous oxide, or vasoactive intestinal peptide) leading to aperistalsis.

Structural (Mechanical) Disorders	Esophageal tumors	Systemic diseases	Miscellaneous	Motor Disorders
Intrinsic compression: Mucosal rings and webs: Schatzki Plummer-Vinson Multiringed esophagus (eosinophilic esophagitis)  Strictures (inflammatory or fibrotic): Peptic Caustic Pill-induced Radiation-induced Extrinsic Compression: Mediastinal masses: Lung cancer Lymphoma Lymph node Thyromegaly Vascular compression: Dysphagia lusoria (aberrant right subclavian artery) Dysphagia aortica (right-sided aorta) Cardio-megaly (enlarged left atrium)	Adenocarcinoma Squamous cell carcinoma Metastatic (breast or melanoma) Leiomyoma, lymphoma, or granular cell tumor	Scleroderma (multifactorial) Pemphigus/pemphigoid Lichen planus Crohn’s disease	Postsurgery (laryngeal, esophageal, or gastric cancers) Acute esophageal infections Esophageal diverticulae Foreign bodies	Primary: Achalasia Diffuse esophageal spasm Hypertensive lower esophageal sphincter Ineffective esophageal motility disorder Nutcracker esophagus	Secondary: Connective tissue diseases Scleroderma CREST syndrome, diabetes Chagas disease Paraneoplastic syndrome

Rare causes

Rare causes
Scleredema adultorum Post chemotherapy and radiation therapy Descending thoracic aorta aneurysm Hypertrophy of cricopharyngeal muscles

Causes by Organ System

The causes of dysphagia based on the organ system are as follows:

Cardiovascular	Aberrant subclavian artery, amyloidosis, anomalous left pulmonary artery,aortic aneurysm, aortic arch anomalies, charge syndrome, double aortic arch, enlarged aorta, enlarged left atrium, hypokalemia, mitral valve stenosis, pericarditis, superior vena cava syndrome
Chemical / poisoning	Arizona bark scorpion poisoning, arsenic poisoning, botulism, cobra poisoning, fluoride poisoning, lead poisoning
Dermatologic	Behcet's syndrome, dermatomyositis, polymyositis, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, systemic lupus erythematosus
Drug Side Effect	Antipsychotic medications, artemether and lumefantrin, atropine, botulinum toxin, bicalutamidechemotherapy, cyclosporine toxicity, cytarabine, dactinomycin, doxycycline, eletriptan, hydroxocobalaminhyoscyamine, ibandronate, ioxilan, ixabepilone, minocycline hydrochloride, nabumetone, neuroleptics, oxcarbazepine, pergolide, rimabotulinumtoxinb, riociguat, ropinirole, sargramostim, sertraline, scarlet fever, tiagabine
Ear Nose Throat	Carcinoma of the vocal tract, cricopharyngeal spasm, eagle syndrome, epiglottitis, Impaired sensitivity in the larynx, laryngeal cancer, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, oral pharyngeal disorders, oral submucous fibrosis, palatine tonsil, pharyngeal pouch, pharyngitis, pharynx cancer, quinsy, retropharyngeal abscess, tonsillar cancer
Endocrine	Cushing's syndrome, diabetic neuropathy, goiter, hyperthyroidism, hypokalemia, hypothyroidism, paraganglioma, Riedel thyroiditis, subacute granulomatous thyroiditis, thymoma, thyroglossal cyst, thyroid cancer, anaplastic,thyrotoxicosis, vagal paraganglioma, De Quervain's thyroiditis, solitary thyroid nodule
Environmental	No underlying causes
Gastroenterologic	Achalasia, adjustable gastric band, aerophagia, aspiration of foreign body, Barret's syndrome,candida esophagitis, cascade stomach, caustic esophagitis, Crohn's disease of the esophagus, diffuse esophageal spasm, diverticulum, eosinophilic esophagitis, eosinophilic gastroenteritis, esophageal atresia, esophageal cancer, esophageal cyst, esophageal diverticulum, esophageal leiomyoma, esophageal obstruction by a foreign body, esophageal pouch, esophageal spasm, esophageal stricture, esophageal web, esophageal moniliasis, esophageal sarcoidosis, esophageal trauma, esophagitis, esophagotracheal fistula, external esophageal compression, gastric cancer, gastric volvulus, gastritis, gastroesophageal reflux, gastrointestinal stromal tumor, gastroparesis, Gaucher disease, globus pharyngis, globus syndrome, hiatal hernia, hypertensive lower esophageal sphincter, infectious esophagitis, intramural pseudodiverticulosis, lymphocytic esophagitis, mitochondrial neurogastrointestinal encephalopathy syndrome, mucositis, myoneurogastrointestinal encephalopathy syndrome, nutcracker esophagus, odynophagia, peptic esophagitis, post surgery, peptic stricture, pharyngeal pouch, pill esophagitis, Plummer-Vinson syndrome, presbyphagia, pseudoachalasia, pyloric stenosis, radiation esophagitis, Schatzki ring, stomach cancer, upper oesophageal sphincter dysfunction, Wilson disease, zenker's diverticulum
Genetic	Aberrant subclavian artery, achalasia-addisonian syndrome, achromatopsia, adrenoleukodystrophy, ataxia neuropathy spectrum,Behcet's syndrome, chromosome 1p36 deletion syndrome, chromosome 22 ring, chromosome 22 trisomy mosaic, connective tissue disease, crisponi syndrome, Emanuel syndrome  , extreme spinal curvature, Gaucher disease,Huntington disease, lissencephaly, type 1, x-linked , muscular dystrophy, Duchenne and Becker type ,myotonic dystrophy, nemaline myopathy1, oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy, Opitz-frias syndrome, pseudoadrenoleukodystrophy, spinal muscular atrophy type I, spinocerebellar ataxia 17  , spinocerebellar ataxia 22, spinocerebellar ataxia, autosomal recessive 1, Stuve-wiedemann dysplasia, vascular ring with right aortic arch, Wiedemann–Rautenstrauch syndrome, Wilson disease
Hematologic	Agranulocytosis, mononucleosis, Plummer-Vinson syndrome
Iatrogenic	No underlying causes
Infectious Disease	Abscess, angina tonsillaris, botulism, candida esophagitis, Chagas disease, cytomegalovirus, diphtheria, epiglottitis, gastritis, herpangina, herpes simplex virus, infectious esophagitis,laryngeal papillomatosis, lassa fever, Ludwig's angina, lyme disease, lymph granulomatosis, Lymphadenopathy,Medication-induced esophagitis, mumps, neonatal tetanus  , oral candidiasis, paracoccidioidomycosis, Pharyngitis, polio, poliomyelitis, postpolio syndrome, quinsy, rabies, retropharyngeal abscess, snakebites, stomatitis, syphilis, tetanus, tetrodotoxin, tonsillar abscess, ulcer, Vincent's angina
Musculoskeletal / Ortho	cytoplasmic body myopathy, Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis, distal myopathy 2, elongated styloid process, extreme spinal curvature, inclusion body myositis, muscular dystrophy, Duchenne and Becker type, osteophytes, Pierre Robin's sequence
Neurologic	10th cranial nerve disorder, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Arnold–Chiari malformation, ataxia neuropathy spectrum, autonomic nerve disorders, autonomic neuropathy, autosomal recessive spastic paraplegia, type 11, Avellis syndrome, Babinski–Nageotte syndrome, basal ganglia disease, basilar artery insufficiency syndrome, brain stem gliomas, brainstem stroke, brainstem tumors, pseudobulbar palsy, bulbar palsy, Canomad syndrome, carotid paraganglioma, central pontine myelinosis, central vagal nucleus lesion, central hypoglossal nerve paralysis, cerebellar Infarction, cerebellar stroke, cerebral palsy, cerebrovascular accident, congenital myasthenic syndrome, cervical osteophytes, dementia, diabetic neuropathy, dystonia, epileptic encephalopathy, early infantile, 1, fosmn syndrome, Guillain-Barre Syndrome, head trauma, Huntington disease, infantile striato-thalamic degeneration, lateral funiculus angina, lateral medullary syndrome, Lhermitte-cornil-quesnel syndrome, lissencephaly, type 1, x-linked, metabolic encephalopathies, microcephaly, mitochondrial neurogastrointestinal encephalopathy syndrome, motor neuron disease, multiple sclerosis, multiple system atrophy, muscular dystrophy, Duchenne and Becker type, myasthenia gravis, myoneurogastrointestinal encephalopathy syndrome, myopathy, myotonic dystrophy, neuroferritinopathy, neurosarcoidosis, osmotic demyelination syndrome, Pallidopyramidal syndrome, paraganglioma, paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis, Parkinson disease, peripheral neuropathy, peripheral tongue paralysis, polyradiculitis, pontocerebellar hypoplasia type 2a, primary lateral sclerosis, adult, primary motility disorders, Pseudobulbar paralysis,pseudodysphagia, secondary motility disorders, Shy-Drager syndrome, spastic paraplegia 11, autosomal recessive, spinal muscular atrophy type I, spinocerebellar ataxia 17 , spinocerebellar ataxia 22 , spinocerebellar ataxia, autosomal recessive 1, striatonigral degeneration infantile, stroke, syringobulbia, tardive dyskinesia, vagus nerve palsy, Wallenberg's syndrome
Nutritional / Metabolic	Adrenoleukodystrophy, amyloidosis, Gaucher disease, hydroxocobalamin, hypokalemia, Plummer-Vinson syndrome, Wilson disease
Obstetric/Gynecologic	Leiomyoma
Oncologic	Acoustic neuroma, brain stem gliomas, brain stem tumors, bronchial carcinoma, carcinoma of the vocal tract, carotid body tumor, chordoma, esophageal cancer, gastric cancer, laryngeal cancer, laryngeal carcinoma, leiomyoma, lymphadenopathy, malignant lung cancer, malignant mesothelioma, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, neck cancer, odontoma, Oral cavity tumor, oropharyngeal cancer, palate cancer, paraganglioma, paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis, paraneoplastic syndrome, pharynx cancer, small cell lung cancer, stomach cancer, supraglottic laryngeal cancer, throat cancer, thyroid cancer, anaplastic, tongue cancer, tonsillar cancer, vagal paraganglioma
Opthalmologic	Achromatopsia, oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy
Overdose / Toxicity	Alcoholism
Psychiatric	Anxiety disorders, dementia, frontotemporal dementia, functional disorders, global hystericus, rumination disorder, tardive dyskinesia
Pulmonary	Bronchial carcinoma, congenital bronchogenic cyst, epiglottitis, malignant lung cancer, malignant mesotheliomamediastinal mass, mediastinitis, Ondine's curse, pharyngitis, pleuritis, sarcoidosis
Renal / Electrolyte	Hypomagnesemia primary, hypophosphatemia, systemic lupus erythematosus
Rheum / Immune / Allergy	Allergic swelling, amyloidosis, Behcet's syndrome, Canomad syndrome, cervical osteophytes, CREST syndrome, dermatomyositis, diffuse systemic sclerosi, fibrosis, graft-versus-host disease, inclusion body myositis, muscular dystrophy, oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy, osteophytes, paraneoplastic syndrome, polymyalgia rheumatica, polymyositis, rheumatoid arthritis, sarcoidosis, scleroderma, stomatitis, systemic lupus erythematosus, systemic sclerosis, trismus
Sexual	No underlying causes
Trauma	Head trauma
Urologic	No underlying causes
Dental	Vincent's angina
Miscellaneous	Franek-bocker-kahlen syndrome, palatoplegia, tongue conditions, vascular abnormality