title: A case of plummer-vinson syndrome showing rapid improvement of Dysphagia and esophageal web after two weeks of iron therapy.
abstract: Plummer-Vinson syndrome (PVS) is a rare entity characterized by upper esophageal webs and iron deficiency anemia. We report a case of PVS whose esophageal web was rapidly improved by iron therapy. A 77-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital with complaints of dysphagia, vomiting, shortness of breath and weight loss for 1 month. Physical examination revealed conjunctival pallor, koilonychia, angular cheilitis and smooth tongue, and laboratory findings were consistent with microcytic hypochromic anemia with iron deficiency. Gastrointestinal endoscopy and barium-swallow esophagography detected a web that prevented passage of the endoscope into the upper portion of the esophagus. The patient received oral iron therapy daily; the hemoglobin concentration rose to 8.9 g/dl and the complaints of dysphagia were dramatically improved after 2 weeks, with improvement of luminal stenosis confirmed by gastrointestinal endoscopy and barium-swallow esophagography. The PVS described in this report had a distinct clinical course, showing very rapid improvement of dysphagia and esophageal web after 2 weeks of oral iron therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomomitsu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tahara
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomoyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shibata
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Masaaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Okubo
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yoshioka
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Takamitsu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishizuka
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuya
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sumi
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomohiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kawamura
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Mitsuo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nagasaka
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshihito
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakagawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Japan.
authors.forename: Masakatsu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomiyasu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Arisawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Naoki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ohmiya
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Japan.
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Hirata
keywords: Dysphagia; Esophageal web; Iron deficiency anemia; Iron therapy; Plummer-Vinson syndrome