What is the danger of esophageal diverticulum?

What is the danger of esophageal diverticulum?

If an esophageal diverticulum causes regurgitation, it can lead to aspiration pneumonia. This is a lung infection caused by inhaling things, such as food and saliva, that usually travel down your esophagus. Obstruction. An obstruction near the diverticulum can make it hard, if not impossible, to swallow.

What causes esophageal diverticulum?

It often is caused by a problem coordinating between moving food and relaxing the upper sphincter, or muscle. Inflammation or infection in your chest cavity can cause mid-esophageal diverticulum. This irritation causes pressure on the esophagus, leading to pockets.

Is esophageal diverticulum cancerous?

Cancer arising from an esophageal diverticulum is mainly found at an advanced stage because of delayed diagnosis. The absence of muscularis propia may lead to early invasion. Thus, cancers within an esophageal diverticulum are considered to be at a more advanced stage than similar cancers arising elsewhere.

What are the symptoms of esophageal diverticulum?

Symptoms of Esophageal Diverticula

  • Dysphagia (difficulty swallowing)
  • Odynophagia (pain with swallowing)
  • Chest pain.
  • Chronic cough.
  • A feeling of food stuck in the throat.
  • Heartburn.
  • Regurgitation (the return of partially digested food from the stomach to the mouth), especially when bending over or lying down.
  • Bad breath.

Is Zenker diverticulum cancerous?

Background. Zenker’s diverticulum (ZD) has been increasingly recognized as a site of primary epithelial malignancy.

What are the symptoms of Zenker diverticulum?

Zenker’s Diverticulum Symptoms

  • Difficulty swallowing.
  • Bad breath.
  • Chronic cough.
  • A feeling of excessive phlegm or mucus in the throat.
  • Sensation of “a lump in the throat”
  • Regurgitation of food (often hours after a meal)
  • Weight loss because eating is difficult.

Can Zenker’s diverticulum go away?

Zenker’s diverticula are normally not treated unless they cause symptoms. Symptomatic diverticula are usually treated by surgery. The surgeon cuts the muscle between the throat and esophagus and removes the pouch.

Can diverticula cause chest pain?

Symptoms of Esophageal Diverticula They include: Dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) Odynophagia (pain with swallowing) Chest pain.