Since December 1984 303 patients have undergone examination in our Multidisciplinary Consultation Service for Swallowing Disorders; 117 of them were suffering from typical globus symptoms. We were able to increase the yield of detection of organic lesions by use of the technique of 35 mm film cineradiography with a rate of 50 frames/s. Frame-by-frame analysis and computer-assisted evaluation showed that 80% of the patients with globus symptoms suffered from one or more underlying organic diseases, which could often be treated later with success. We found an increased incidence of early hypopharyngeal diverticula, webs, and motility disorders of the upper esophageal sphincter often associated with gastro-esophageal reflux or weakness of the pharyngeal wall. Cineradiography proved to be a very important tool in the analysis of the pharyngeal swallow in globus pharyngis.
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