The C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital team has extensive experience diagnosing EoE and distinguishing between this condition and others with similar symptoms. Your care may include specialists in pediatric gastroenterology and possible pediatric allergy. Our physicians will work closely with your primary care provider and other specialists to coordinate your treatment and provide the best possible care.

To learn more or schedule an appointment, contact our Pediatric Gastroenterology Clinic at 734-763-9650.

It’s most common for EoE to present in childhood or early adulthood, but it can show itself at any age. In some people, symptoms can be very intermittent, such as trouble swallowing once every few months. Many people have had symptoms for years before a diagnosis is made. In adults, typical symptoms include:

• Trouble swallowing solid foods (also called dysphagia), including food impactions, which involves food getting stuck in the esophagus
• Recurrent vomiting immediately after eating
• Chest discomfort
• Heartburn that is refractory to medication
• Feeding disorders in younger children

To diagnose EoE, we discuss your symptoms and conduct a physical examination. Based on your risk factors, your doctor might recommend an upper endoscopy. Upper endoscopy, also known as an esophagogastroduodenoscopy or EGD, uses an endoscope—a lighted, flexible tube, about the thickness of a finger—to examine the upper gastrointestinal tract. A special instrument may be passed through the tube to take a small piece of tissue (a biopsy) for examination in the laboratory.  

The goal of treatment is to eliminate the eosinophils from the esophagus and to reduce symptoms. Standard treatments include:  

• Topical steroids: The medication coats the lining of the esophagus and decrease inflammation, with very little if any getting absorbed and circulated to the rest of the body.  Topical steroids can help decrease the number of eosinophils in the esophagus.  
• Proton pump inhibitors: These medications, which are commonly used to treat heartburn and GERD, can treat effectively treat EoE in some patients and can be a good treatment option in those who respond.
• Biologic medications: Newer medications that target specific parts of the immune system that are overactive in EoE.
• Removal of most common allergen foods: The most common foods causing eosinophilic esophagitis can be removed from the diet (dairy, wheat, soy, and egg). Once symptoms have resolved, the eliminated foods are added back into the diet—one at a time—and the patient is observed for any reaction to the newly introduced foods.  

Endoscopic dilation of strictures: Narrowings of the esophagus, called strictures, are dilated (widened) with an endoscope using balloons or tapered tubes. The widening allows food to pass more easily through the esophagus. Our multidisciplinary team includes experts in allergy, pathology, and radiology.