Difficulty Swallowing

[DS366]

In 2005 I was rearended while sitting stopped at a stoplight.
After several weeks of pain pills for the soreness.... the pain was gone. The sessions that I went to with a chiropractor (for several weeks) only made me sore again and was only making it worse instead of better.
I did and still do have a very difficult time swallowing... it seems the food/liquid stops right around the area of my esophagus and literally sticks there for up to several secs, most of the time this causes me to choke on whatever I'm trying to swallow.
2 years later I'm still struggling with this.... my attorney keeps telling me "In all my years I've never seen ANYTHING like this" his attitude is one of none belief in what I'm describing.
I have been to a Ears, Nose, Throat specialist and have received the same attitude, although he doesnt disregard it completely. This specialist had 2 berium swallows done and both came back with no problems, he is now wanting me to have an esophageal mobility study done and I'm working on getting that scheduled... I have not been under constant doctor care because of lack of insurance, my native tribe has paid for some of this but is not much help, so now this is out of pocket expense and I really am leary of spending the money to have this study done... wondering if its the right test or if there is something else that would be better.
The specialist is amazed at my swallowing problem because it is not consistant.... I can drink milk at one time and another (even that same day) it will block in my throat and not move.... there have been times I could eat meat and have it go down smooth and then try something much softer like bread and it doesnt and vise versa... I am bewildered and only know that this is really happening and no one seems to believe me.

Any advice is helpful at this point... thank you.

[Dr. Joshua]

I'm happy that you've been seen by the ENT and will be getting the esophageal motility study done. Swallowing difficulties can be caused by a number of conditions, most of the common causes are not related to trauma. How were you injured in the accident? Was any cervical spine radiology done? What if anything was diagnosed?

It's worth bearing in mind that your swallowing difficulties may or may not have anything to do with the previous trauma.

Some causes such as thyroiditis, thyroid tumors, esophageal tumors, neurological diseases etc must be kept in mind.

This sounds like a difficult to diagnose symptom, I'm happy that it is being addressed systematically. Usually I would like to see a neck area MRI also if the cause cannot be otherwise determined. It would at least rule out a variety of possible causes, also provide information of your cervical spine. C-spine is rarely the cause of swallowing difficulties (except postoperatively), but there are rare cases of bone overgrowth that may compress the pharynx/esophagus.

I cannot recommend an MRI or any other diagnostic tests or treatments because I am not your attending doctor, but keep in touch with your doctor and you might present these as talking points. Follow your own doctor's orders and keep us posted.

[DS366]

Immediately after the impact (rearended) I sat for several seconds just stunned. The very first indication I had that I wasnt ok was when I went to get out of the car (I was driving and wearing my seatbelt) when I turned my head towards the door while reaching for the handle, a sharp burning pain exploded at the base of my skull, I became instantly dizzy and disoriented, my vision was blurred and I was very wobbly.
When the paramedics came to the car door I tried to get out to get on the stretcher but was unable to do it on my own, they had to put the stretcher onto the edge of the car door and help me scoot out. I dont see anything special in this, in that I'm sure its used in the majority of accidents.
During being transported out of my car to the ambulance I complained continually of the back of my head... it felt on fire.
At the hospital I was not able to walk around on my own... the lady who took my xrays had to help me stand up and move around... hours later when I left the hospital I still had a difficult time walking... I had this problem for about a week... it slowly got better during that week, I know by the end of the week I was fully able to walk around without feeling wobbly.
The only thing done for me at the hospital was basic xrays.
The night I came home from the hospital we had gotten a prescript filled for the pain. I tried eating that night before taking the pill.... it was the first time I'd tried to eat since the accident and I wasnt able to eat... I ended up choking right there in the kitchen... during that week I ate broth or chicken noodle soup and was having difficulty with that. This too slowly got better... but today 2 years later it is still here... not near what it was that first week but still here.
I'm tired of being looked at by my attorney and doctors like I'm making this up... its frustrating and humiliating to be treated like this... I'm at the point of just giving up on trying to get help and just deal with it like I have these past 2 yrs... the only thing that makes me still try was being told that this could get worse later on.... or it could stay the same... no one can "tell me the future" like my NTS said.

Thank you Dr. Joshua for your kindly response.