Abstract
Background:Hypercontractile motility of the esophagus is occasionally noted on high-resolution manometry (HRM), but its clinical correlations are unclear. We compared symptom severity and clinical presentation of patients with hypercontractile motility of the esophagus.Methods:This was a retrospective cohort study. We queried a prospectively maintained database for patients who underwent esophageal function testing from October 1, 2016, to October 30, 2018. We included patients with jackhammer esophagus (JE; >= 2 swallows with distal contractile integral [DCI] >= 8,000 mm Hg center dot cm center dot s), nutcracker esophagus (NE; mean DCI 5,000-8,000 mm Hg center dot cm center dot s without meeting JE criteria), or esophagogastric junction outflow obstruction ([EGJOO]: abnormal median integrated relaxation pressure (>15 mm Hg) without meeting achalasia criteria, with JE [EGJOO-h], or normal motility [EGJOO-n]). HRM, endoscopy, barium esophagram, ambulatory pH studies, and symptom questionnaires were reevaluated for further analysis. Clinical parameters were analyzed using Spearman Rho correlation. Categorical variables were assessed with Fisher exact or chi-square test.Results:Altogether, 85 patients met inclusion criteria. They were divided into 4 subgroups: 28 with JE, 18 with NE, 15 with EGJOO-h, and 24 with EGJOO-n. Patients with EGJOO-h were the most symptomatic overall. No correlation was seen between symptoms and mean DCI (p >= 0.05 all groups) or number of hypercontractile swallows (>= 8,000 mm Hg center dot cm center dot s,p >= 0.05). A significant correlation was noted between dysphagia and lower esophageal sphincter pressure (LESP) and LESP integral (p <= 0.05).Conclusion:The number of hypercontractile swallows and mean DCI were not associated with patient-reported symptoms. Elevated LESP may be a more relevant contributor to dysphagia.