nutcracker esophogus/spasms/new treatment? - Digestive Disorders Message Board

fran stout · 12-07-2003, 12:25 PM

HI....first time on this board. I suffered with esoph spasms for 6 years and went through hell with all the tests,rx's,surgey,miss diagnosis' and dimissals from gastric physicians who would blow me off because they couldn't figure it out. I truely believe that they think I'm a drug seeker. I did not give up and finally found a Dr. that believed me. All the previous testing showed nothing because I wasn't spasming at the time. This time my esophogus clamped down on the scope while getting my last endoscopy. Yahoo...finally a diagnosis! Severe acid reflux and nutcracker esophogus .Now for the best part. He put me on Nexium twice a day for a month(then went to once a day) and gave me an Rx for a compound he calls the "Pink Lady" 3 equal parts of the active ingredient in pepto bismol,benedryl and viscous lidocaine. AT LAST almost instant relief!!! The pepto coats, the benedryl stops the potential allergic reaction causing the spasms(?) and the lidocaine numbs the esophogus and stops the spasms. I no longer have to take any pain meds or sit for hours in excruciating chest pain waiting for something to work. I can always depend on the Pink Lady to stop my spasms and pain. Hopefully research will find what causes this but until it happens. I hope this will be of help to some of you who suffer the same. If you have any questions or comments please reply Also wondering about long term effects of taking Nexium for prolonged period.
Thanks :

maggiecttr · 12-07-2003, 01:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fran stout

If you have any questions or comments please reply
Thanks :

Hi! Glad you found relief at last! What were your symptoms? How did this condition start? What is a Nutcracker Esophogus?

Thanks, Maggie C.

fran stout · 12-07-2003, 02:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by maggiecttr

Hi! Glad you found relief at last! What were your symptoms? How did this condition start? What is a Nutcracker Esophogus?

Thanks, Maggie C.

Thanks Maggie...my symptoms start with the feeling like a bubble in my chest then I get the discomfort and pain of indigestion and then my esophogus begins to spasm with horrific chest pain akin to heart attack. It began out of the blue 6 years ago.Nutcracker esophogus is a condition where the regular esophogeal muscles contract irregularly and clamp down much harder then normal. Apparently this is a tough condition to diagnose and treat.The cause is unknown but suggestive of an allergic response.

Thanks for your reply

Harry · 12-07-2003, 11:18 PM

My wife had the problem and was disgnosd by a manometer test. She took Prilosec for about 6 years.

I think the problem is caused by a lack of magnesium in your diet that can cause both cramping and spasms. And as you know can be very scary!!

Magnesium comes in many forms and some are better than others-- some good forms are the aspartates, orotates, glycinates and the chelates amino acids. Malic acic also helps absorption--- it's in some fruit like apples.

I think the best way to test to determine a magnesium deficiency is an intracellular (mononuclear cell) magnesium screen. It is more sensitive than measuring/screening the magnesium in your blood/ serum which can be normal even with problems. I think 70% of magnesium is in the bones. What really counts is the amount that is in your CELLs!!!

An interesting note is if you take magnisium supplement orally with grapefruit juice the absorption at the cell level is increased 7 times because of an enzyme in the juice. I have found average Doctors don't know some of these facts.

My wife now takes nothing for "nutcracker syndrome" except vits and minerals supplements.

God Bless---Harry

fran stout · 12-08-2003, 09:15 AM

Thanks Harry...taking a magnesium supplement would surely be easy to try. I will start today.
Thanks so much for your sharing knowledge and encouraging words.
Fran