Achalasia causes

Achalasia Microchapters
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

The main problem in achalasia is a failure of the a muscular ring where the esophagus and stomach come together (lower esophageal sphincter) to relax during swallowing.

Another general cause of the disorder is a lack of nerve stimulation to the muscles of the esophagus. Causes include:

• Cancers
• Damage to the nerves of the esophagus
• Infection with a parasite
• Inherited factors

As a result, the wave-like contractions (peristalsis) of smooth muscles that normally force food through the esophagus and other parts of the digestive tract do not work as well. Achalasia is a rare disorder. It may occur at any age, but is most common in middle-aged or older adults.

Common Causes

• Chagas disease
• Amyloidosis
• Eosinophilic gastroenteritis
• HSV-1 infection
• Neurofibromatosis
• Paraneoplastic syndrome
• Sarcoidosis

Causes by Organ System

Cardiovascular	No underlying causes
Chemical/Poisoning	No underlying causes
Dental	No underlying causes
Dermatologic	No underlying causes
Drug Side Effect	No underlying causes
Ear Nose Throat	No underlying causes
Endocrine	Multiple endocrine neoplasia, type 2B
Environmental	No underlying causes
Gastroenterologic	Gastric carcinoma , Eosinophilic gastroenteritis , Degeneration of myenteric plexus in esophagus , Chronic idiopathic intestinal pseudo-obstruction
Genetic	No underlying causes
Hematologic	No underlying causes
Iatrogenic	No underlying causes
Infectious Disease	Chagas disease , HSV-1 infection
Musculoskeletal/Orthopedic	No underlying causes
Neurologic	No underlying causes
Nutritional/Metabolic	No underlying causes
Obstetric/Gynecologic	No underlying causes
Oncologic	No underlying causes
Ophthalmologic	No underlying causes
Overdose/Toxicity	No underlying causes
Psychiatric	No underlying causes
Pulmonary	No underlying causes
Renal/Electrolyte	No underlying causes
Rheumatology/Immunology/Allergy	Sarcoidosis , Juvenile Sjögren's syndrome with achalasia and gastric hypersecretion
Sexual	No underlying causes
Trauma	No underlying causes
Urologic	No underlying causes
Miscellaneous	Anderson-Fabry disease , Amyloidosis

Causes in Alphabetical Order

• Amyloidosis
• Anderson-Fabry disease
• Chagas disease
• Chronic idiopathic intestinal pseudo-obstruction
• Degeneration of myenteric plexus in esophagus
• Eosinophilic gastroenteritis
• Gastric carcinoma
• HSV-1 infection
• Increased Lower Esophageal Sphincter pressure
• Juvenile Sjögren's syndrome with achalasia and gastric hypersecretion
• Mediastinal Mass
• Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2B
• Neurofibromatosis
• Paraneoplastic syndrome
• Sarcoidosis