Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2017 Sep 13:4:e108.
doi: 10.14309/crj.2017.108. eCollection 2017.

Extraosseous Calcification of the Esophagus: Clinicopathologic Correlates of Esophageal Mucosal Calcinosis

Affiliations
Case Reports

Extraosseous Calcification of the Esophagus: Clinicopathologic Correlates of Esophageal Mucosal Calcinosis

Ari Garber et al. ACG Case Rep J. .

Abstract

Esophageal mucosal calcinosis (EMC) is a rare cause of dysphagia with high morbidity. We present a patient who experienced melena and 3 months of solid and liquid dysphagia along with bilateral lower extremity pain, erythema, and edema later determined to be calcific uremic arteriolopathy (CUA), or calciphylaxis. An esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed nodularity and linear ulcerations in the upper third of the esophagus. Histology showed active inflammation and ulceration with small foci of subepithelial and intraepithelial calcification consistent with EMC. There is no known treatment for this disorder. Sodium thiosulfate, typically used to treat CUA, did not improve her dysphagia.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Nodularity and ulceration in the upper esophagus.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Immunohistochemical stain showing (A) abundant dystrophic calcification within fibrinopurulent debris at the ulcer site (200x), (B) intact squamous mucosa with focal subepithelial calcification (200x), and (C) a detached fragment of squamous epithelium with intraepithelial calcification (400x).

References

    1. Ketteler M, Rothe H, Krüger T, Biggar P, Schlieper G. Mechanisms and treatment of extraosseous calcification in chronic kidney disease. Nat Rev Nephrol. 2011;7(9):509–16. - PubMed
    1. Gorospe N, Fadare O. Gastric mucosal calcinosis. Adv Anat Pathol. 2007;14(3):224–8. - PubMed
    1. Nayak H, Mohindra S, Iqbal S, Saraswat V, Agarwal V, Pande G. Gastric mucosal calcinosis mimicking malignancy. Am J Gastroenterol. 2016;111:1380. - PubMed
    1. Varghese G, Patel J, Aggarwal S. An unusual site of dystrophic calcification: Esophageal mucosal calcinosis. Am J Kidney Dis. 2016;67(5):A111.
    1. Machavarapu A, Brown TA, Nwakoby IE. Rare case of hematemesis: Calciphylaxis of the esophagus. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2017; in press. - PubMed

Publication types