A 44-year-old female patient with a history of gastric ulcers, gastritis, gastric polyps, Schatzki ring, and hiatal hernia presented with the complaint of progressive dysphagia to solid foods. This dysphagia first developed after an incident of food aspiration 4 weeks prior to presentation. Three weeks after this event, she experienced persistent odynophagia with left-sided occipital headaches and neck pain radiating to the left ear and mastoid process. Physical exam : remarkable for decreased neck range of motion with flexion and extension and bilateral neck soft tissue tenderness to palpation.
Labs : white blood cell count of 11.88. After an infectious etiology had been ruled out, an upper gastrointestinal series with barium swallow confirmed the patient’s known Schatzki ring and hiatal hernia. Imaging : A CT scan, MRI, and MRA of the brain were negative for abnormalities; however, a…
