Symptoms
- Food, especially meat or bread, feeling stuck in the chest or throat
- Pain with swallowing
- Coughing or choking when eating or drinking
- Regurgitating food
- Eating more slowly or avoiding certain foods
Common causes
- Narrowing from long-standing reflux (peptic stricture) or a Schatzki ring
- Eosinophilic esophagitis, an allergic inflammation that's increasingly common in adults
- Motility disorders such as achalasia
- Less often, a tumor of the esophagus
- Problems in the throat or neurologic causes, which need a different evaluation
Testing
- Upper endoscopy with biopsies, which can also stretch a narrowing in the same visit
- Esophageal manometry when the endoscopy looks normal
- Barium swallow X-ray in some cases
Treatment
Depends on the cause: dilation for strictures and rings, acid suppression or targeted therapies for eosinophilic esophagitis, and specific procedures for achalasia.
Common questions
What should I do if food gets stuck?
If you can't swallow your own saliva, are drooling or have trouble breathing, go to the ER now. If you can still swallow saliva, it may pass on its own, but don't wait more than a few hours, because food left in place too long can injure the esophagus. Don't make yourself vomit, and skip home remedies like meat tenderizer, which can do harm. Once it's cleared, ask whether biopsies were taken to check for eosinophilic esophagitis, and book a follow-up visit to find out why it happened.
Is dilation painful?
It's done under sedation during the endoscopy, and most people feel nothing.
Is this just aging?
No. Swallowing problems have a cause worth finding at any age.
Questions about swallowing problems? Call (813) 400-0543 or send a message.
Board-certified gastroenterologist (ABIM). Last reviewed November 1, 2026.
This page is general information, not medical advice. For a medical emergency, call 911.