Nutcracker esophagus

I wonder if I can track down an article I read about this..... my father in law has oesophageal spasms. I think the article said orange juice is a trigger. My f-i-l finds sparkling water helps clear food through a spasm.

Have they tested for eosinophilic oesophagitis - I think this can sometimes be a cause?
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10620-011-1655-5?LI=true#page-1

The Facebook group sounds good!

MMM

MMM...I tried to make your link clickable, but it doesn't work correctly.  No luck!  Anyone who wishes to view it will have to copy and paste it into the browser. 

Post Edited By Moderator (dencha) : 4/25/2013 9:16:24 AM (GMT-6)

Hi,

My father tried nitroglycerine pads for a couple of weeks, but they didn't seem to work. Right now he's in the hospital for a botox injection. I really hope that will work and that the effect of it will last for long. They say that it can be everything between a day and years. He has also lost a lot of weight, and some days he hasn't been able to eat or drink anything, not even water. The strange thing is that he from time to time also gets flush and a terrible itch all over the body. If there is any relation to the esophagus thing I don't know, but it started at the same time.

Good luck with your procedure in May. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you! 

Unfortunately the botox injections don't seem to have worked. My father has had even more problems since then.

Now the doctor has started to question the diagnosis and will do a new, thourough investigation. He will contact a neurologist, among others, since he has begun to think about some kind of epileptic desease. So we are more or less back to square one. He now also has painkiller patches, as a complement to the painkilling suppositories he already takes. Both containing some kind of morphine....

New surgeries are discussed. One is to put a stent in the esophagus. But nothing is decided yet. Furhter investigations and discussions with different specilists will take place first.

ISTHIS - HI.  The consortium at Johns Hopkins decided I have a tight LES.  The procedure they are going to try is called POEM (per oral endoscopic myotomy).  The doctor originally wanted to do a Heller myotomy but, the other doctors think this procedure is a better fit as only the muscle at the sphincter itself is cut. 

The procedure is scheduled for the 7th of May.  I will update post surgery.

Also, just recently my doctor put me on an antispasmodic that if taken before eating lessens the amount of pain I experience.  It is called Hyoscyamine.  Of course all the meds I tried worked for a few days before they didn't any more.  So far this one has enabled me to eat semi-solid food again.  Not a lot of it but, some.

Hope things work out for you.

FYI!! Urgent!! Nutcracker esophagus turned out to be a stomach virus hidden in the intestines!
That is why all tests were negative and tons of dilaudid did not take pain away!
14 doctors, 5 hospitals and 12 hospital stays in 8 months....
That is why Botox didn't work!
Heart attack symptoms, extreme nausea, constant pain, vomiting, etc..
Need broad spectrum anti-viral meds..
Amantadine and Flagyll were meds that finally helped me.
I hope this helps with some of the suffering..

Post Edited (fd2000) : 2/4/2016 3:58:29 PM (GMT-7)

HI Im new here, I was hoping to get some pointers on how to stop the "nutcracker/ jackhammer" spasms I been having for 11 months now. I went to the hospital sept 2019 thinking i was having a heart attack, it went away but an hour later i was back thinking i was going to die from heart attack. it went away again. I did every test out there for my heart. luckily my regular dr suggested esophageal spams as a possibility. I fit every symptom. I never take tums or anything my whole life for acid reflux or heart burn. since then (11months) it has happened to me 22 times. they last between 15 min to 2 hours of seriously thinking im going to die. I end up chewing 10 tums, my husband put on charkra sound for the heart which is calming, I also put a heating pad on my chest. the problem is i think i might be having them from stress lol . so now i stress myself out waiting for the next one. I kept a log of what i ate the day of, and time it lasted and severity of pain. does anyone PLEASE have a way to make them go away faster. i for got i do take prilosec every day now at suppertime. for 6 months, i still have them, also theres no food that i notice that triggers it. i dont have any problems eating or drinking but i dont while its happeneing cause ill choke lol.

My husband was just diagnosed last month with Jackhammer Esophagus. We’ve tried almost every home remedy posted on the internet. He got some relief from cold things since this was not his trigger. Crushed ice with a drop of peppermint oil. Sucking on an Altoid. Peppermint is suppose to relax the esophagus BUT be careful because this can also cause acid reflux. There are times when he can’t get a burp out so he’s sucked on an Altoid and that sucking motion helps so he can finally release a burp. He drinks with a straw and said he had felt the liquid go all the way down his esophagus without feeling like it was stuck.
He’s been prescribed Dilitiazem 60mg just a week ago so we will see if this helps. We are also in the process of seeking a second opinion from another GI Specialist.

I hope this helps bring you comfort.

I am pretty sure I have been having episodes of esophageal spasms in my lower esophagus right under my sternum. Initial pain is minor but then I can feel the contraction getting stronger until it is intense and radiates through my chest and around to my upper back. It reminds me of a birth contraction as it gets stronger and stronger. Sometimes it stays relatively minor and relaxes but other times it won't let go for up to an hour. Not fun. Initially they thought it was my gallbladder but a few days after having that removed I ended up in an ER due to another episode thinking it must be my heart if it wasn't my gallbladder. Heart checked out fine. So I've self diagnosed Nutcracker esophagus. Dont feel a monomatry test will do any good because the episodes are so random. I kept a food journal and could not find any links. Usually it happens hours after eating, never during. Today I had one while on vacation sitting on a deck overlooking the ocean first thing in the morning. Had not eaten anything and certainly not stressed. Weird thing is that they stopped altogether about 16 months ago but have started again this week. No idea why. Only thing I have found to help is to lay on my back & hang over the edge of a bed so that I'm stretching the muscle that is squeezing so hard. Then roll over to stomach and hang so edge of bed is putting pressure on it. Eventually it subsides but during, I break out in a sweat and find it hard to breath. I've read about a medication mixture that you can drink when you feel one coming on that I am going to talk to my Dr about. I don't really want to take something daily because mine are so random. They seem to crop up for a few weeks then subside. I do notice that if I am thinking about it or worrying about it, it is more likely to happen. But sometimes it's out of nowhere. Its especially not fun while driving!

I'm so glad I found this forum. For the past month, I've been experiencing horrible spasms every single time I eat. At first, I thought I was having heart palpitations, but then I realized that the spasm feeling was most strong after eating and if I happened to lay down soon after eating (always a big no-no). I've had GERD for years and am on PPIs (for years) but this is a new thing and it's just awful. Earlier this year, I had both a colonoscopy and endoscopy with just the continued GERD treatment coming out of that(had an endo years ago where I was initially diagnosed with GERD and prescribed the PPIs at that time). I've been doing a lot of research on esophagus spasms and finally ended up here.

I'm posting today to see if my symptoms correspond to what everybody else seems to be experiencing. The spasms tend to be felt in the middle of my chest and I have the sensation that I need to belch, but can't. As I mentioned, I wouldn't call it painful, but it is very uncomfortable. I also have LOTS of gurgling in my lower intestines like once the food finally gets to the stomach the gurgling revs up. It sounds like an appt with the gastro doc is the way to go, but if anybody could confirm that what I'm describing sounds like what you are or have experienced, I'd greatly appreciate it! Thanks.

Thank you Linda Sue!

I had Nissen Fundoplication to fix hiatal hernia and correct 'Jackhammer' esophagus. My first 5 years were great; no acid reflux, no chest pain no digestive issues whatsoever. My symptoms started to return about 4 months ago and after having a 'Barium Swallow', it was reported that the hiatal hernia is back and my wrap looks suspiciously as if it has come undone. My GI doctor put me on 40mg Omeprazole 2x daily before meals and that has helped a lot. However, I may have to have this whole procedure done AGAIN! I can't stay on PPI's forever. I'm just recovering from a full knee replacement and here I am facing another major surgical event!

I have researched NF and it's supposed to be PERMANENT!
So sorry to post such dismal information.