anyone have difficulty swallowing to the pooint that the food gets stuck in upper esophagus.
small amounts of food get caught and won't go down. bile excreted with vomitiing?? questions for my mom docdave
Posted by njlymemom (Member # 15088) on :
I used to have this problem, and it was quite severe.
With tx it has gotten better. The only time I have a noticable problem is during a relapse or herx.
It did take a while to improve. How long have you been tx lyme or co's?
Posted by MY3BOYS (Member # 17830) on :
sounds like she may need upper GI series to check for strictures, etc that may be causing obstruction.
that can cause those symptoms as well and doc usually can dialate them while doing edoscopy.
worth a look, esp. if food getting lodged and bile with vomiting, sounds like more than just a lyme symptom, best wishes
Posted by onmyway (Member # 17607) on :
I get this but mine is slightly different! It happens even with water! I think mine is a spasm of the esophagus. It hurts very bad for anywhere from 20 seconds to sometimes a minute! Then sometimes I get the hiccups afterwards! It is a weird symptom but it started with me about 8 months ago!!! Treatment has not helped! Not to say it won't! I just started TYGACIL yesterday so hopefully it may do the trick for all of the TBI's!!!
Take care, Onmyway
Posted by shelly23 (Member # 16124) on :
yes when this first started happening to me it scared me .. Now i am so use to it .. it seems to hit a week at a time and then disappears....... does this come in phases for anyone else
Posted by sutherngrl (Member # 16270) on :
This happens to me mostly with water. However some times if I just swallow with nothing in my mouth, it feels like I can't swallow. Feels like the muscles don't want to kick in.
Posted by TerryK (Member # 8552) on :
I'm sorry your mom is dealing with this. It is miserable.
I had this really bad for awhile. Felt like I had a lump in my throat sometimes. With or without the feeling of a lump, I would choke on pills, food and even water.
It improved greatly with doxy. It took many months. I'm still in treatment and it comes and goes now but is gone most of the time.
I'd check for allergies too but for me it is mostly gone with abx.
Terry
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
Hi Doc Dave.
I second the vote for an esophogram.
Maybe a Modified Barium Swallow Study while you are at it.
Sometimes radiologists can lower the x-ray and follow liquid/food
As it leaves the mouth into the upper esophagus.
If they are feeling cooperative on a particular date.
The four phases of swallowing are:
Oral Prep
Oral
Pharyngeal
Esophogeal
As a ST, I've mainly dealt with the first 3.
Problems with the esophagus are usually dealt with surgically.
Strictures are common.
A couple of things to try with Mom.
Very small bites. Small sips.
Wait at least 30 seconds to a minute (longer if you can) prior
To putting more food/liquid in mouth to masticate and swallow.
Softer foods sometimes are easier.
Eat at a 90 degree angle.
Do not lay down for at least one hour after eating.
Keep the head of the bed elevated up to 75 degrees.
Keep meals small and frequent.
Keep me posted. Let me know if there is anything else I can do.
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by lemonade (Member # 9413) on :
My daughter and I both had/have this. Google "Bells Palsey of the gut". It may help to explain. Karen
Posted by glm1111 (Member # 16556) on :
Yep, I have/had this comes and goes. I have bells palsy of the gut. Drinking ice water helps me for some reason.
I think it may have something to do with constricting(tightening the esphogeal muscle) so I have more motility to swallow. Does your mom have Lyme?
Hope this helps a little,
gael
Posted by stymielymie (Member # 10044) on :
she had a major workup 2 years ago finally no etiology so they dilated the esophagus. the dilation did not last very long.
do they have a stent they can place in the esophagus to keep it open since the muscle don't seem to produce an adequate peristalsis.
docdave
Posted by glm1111 (Member # 16556) on :
DocDave,
Has she been tested for Lyme? Parasites? I would definitely pursue the possibility of infection.
How old is your mom, if you don't mind me asking? I don't know about a stent.
Gael
Posted by DoctorLuddite (Member # 13853) on :
While those studies mentioned above may demonstrate a focal are of dysfunction, they won't explain the process that led to it, and a doc who demonstrates a lesion of that nature and steamrolls ahead with treatment without answering the question of how the problem evolved will be doing a disservice to the patient. For the muscles of the esophagus to exhibit dysfunctional peristalsis, some metabolic derangement in the contraction process must be present, or there must be some mechanical compression in the nerve or blood supply to the muscles in question.
Posted by deersharon (Member # 18354) on :
Yes this happened to me for 25 years, since first infected with lyme. I was tested 5x for GI/swallowing, they never found anything wrong. (Of course I never had problems choking on milkshake consistency!) Finally in a routine check my doctor felt my throat and felt that my thyroid was hard. An ultrasound confirmed Hashimotos disease, which is very common from Lyme. But, I also had cancer tumors and my thyroid was removed. I no longer have the choking problem. Please ask for an ultrasound. Hope it helps.
![[shake]](graemlins/shake.gif)