Swallowing difficulty can be experienced and described in many ways. This includes having a lump in the throat, pain when swallowing or a complete inability to swallow.
Symptoms that accompany swallowing difficulty vary depending on the underlying cause. Common symptoms of a disorder of the esophagus include regurgitation of food, vomiting, weight loss, bad breath, a bad taste in the mouth, throat burning, chest pain, vitamin deficiencies and feeling like the throat is swollen. Disorders of the esophagus include pharyngeal pouch, achalasia, cancer of the esophagus and esophageal stricture.
Symptoms that can occur with swallowing difficulty due to foreign body and airway obstruction include choking, shortness of breath, inability to talk and a blue-colored skin (cyanosis).
Common symptoms of an infectious cause of swallowing difficulty include fever, cough, flu-like symptoms, sneezing, swollen glands, fatigue, headache, and rash. Infectious causes include influenza, upper respiratory infection, infectious mononucleosis, cold, mumps, tonsillitis, or infectious pharyngitis.
Symptoms that can occur with swallowing difficulty due to a severe allergic reaction (anaphylactic reaction) include wheezing and shortness of breath.
Symptoms that can occur with swallowing difficulty due to laryngitis, polyp on a vocal cord, or a tumor of the larynx include hoarseness, loss of voice, and throat inflammation.
Complications of swallowing difficulty include decreased food and fluid intake.
Complications of underlying causes of swallowing difficulty vary widely depending on the specific disease, disorder, or condition, and can be serious and life threatening. For example, a foreign body in the throat is an immediately life-threatening emergency that can lead to fatal airway obstruction if not treated immediately. Swallowing difficulty can also be due to throat trauma that can lead to serious swelling and airway obstruction.
Because swallowing difficulty can be a symptom of a serious or life-threatening disease, condition or disorder, it should be evaluated by a physician or other licensed health care provider....more about Swallowing Difficulty »
The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources for Swallowing Difficulty includes the 1 symptoms listed below:
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The symptom information on this page attempts to provide a list of some possible signs and symptoms of Swallowing Difficulty. This signs and symptoms information for Swallowing Difficulty has been gathered from various sources, may not be fully accurate, and may not be the full list of Swallowing Difficulty signs or Swallowing Difficulty symptoms. Furthermore, signs and symptoms of Swallowing Difficulty may vary on an individual basis for each patient. Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of any signs or symptoms and whether they are indeed Swallowing Difficulty symptoms.
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