Plummer-Vinson Syndrome

Excerpt

Plummer-Vinson syndrome (PVS) is a rare condition characterized by the classic triad of post-cricoid dysphagia, iron-deficiency anemia, and upper esophageal webs. In the United Kingdom, it is known as Paterson-Brown-Kelly syndrome. This name was given after two British laryngologists, Donald Ross Paterson (1863-1939) and Adam Brown-Kelly (1865-1941), who published their findings in 1919. PVS is more common in middle-aged women at an increased risk of developing squamous cell carcinoma of the pharynx and proximal esophagus. This syndrome was named Plummer-Vinson syndrome after 2 Mayo Clinic physicians, Henry Stanley Plummer (1874-1936) and Porter Paisley Vinson (1890-1959), who noted cases of iron deficiency and dysphagia in the presence of suspected spasm of the upper esophagus or abnormal angulation of the esophagus.