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Drug-induced esophagitis
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Drug-induced esophagitis

Contributors: Michael W. Winter MD, Paritosh Prasad MD
Other Resources UpToDate PubMed

Synopsis

Drug-induced esophagitis can occur when a swallowed pill fails to fully traverse the esophagus and dissolves in the esophagus ("pill esophagitis"). It can also occur in the absence of any pill becoming lodged; drugs that have a very low pH when dissolved in saliva can cause acute gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), leading to esophagitis.

Pill-mediated disease often occurs at anatomical sites of narrowing including the aortic arch, left mainstem bronchus, and distal esophagus in patients with left atrial enlargement or in the setting of motility disorders or esophageal strictures. Patients often present with retrosternal chest pain, heartburn, odynophagia, and dysphagia within hours or days of ingesting the causal medication, although symptoms can present up to one month following ingestion.

Drug-induced esophagitis occurs more frequently in patients who take pills prior to lying flat or with inadequate water intake, or in patients taking a large-sized pill. Commonly implicated medications include tetracycline, doxycycline, clindamycin, aspirin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), bisphosphonates, potassium chloride, quinidine preparations, iron compounds, emepronium, alprenolol, and pinaverium.

Related Topics: Drug-induced dysphagia, Drug-induced hematemesis

Codes

ICD10CM:
K20.80 – Other esophagitis without bleeding
T50.905A – Adverse effect of unspecified drugs, medicaments and biological substances, initial encounter

SNOMEDCT:
47753002 – Drug-induced esophagitis

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References

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Last Reviewed:01/23/2018
Last Updated:01/23/2018
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Drug-induced esophagitis
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A medical illustration showing key findings of Drug-induced esophagitis : Dysphagia, Dyspepsia, Retrosternal chest pain
Copyright © 2024 VisualDx®. All rights reserved.