The Case of the Infection that Wasn't !

Eosinophilic esophagitis is an under-recognized inflammatory disorder of the esophagus. It has been frequently diagnosed in pediatric patients; however, over the last few years, there has been an increase in the number of cases recognized in adults as well. Despite this fact, eosinophilic esophagitis (EE) is often a delayed diagnosis in the primary care setting due to the overlapping symptoms it shares with other esophageal and gastrointestinal disorders such as gastroesophageal reflux disease and gastroenteritis, as well as a lack of awareness among physicians who see adult patients. We performed an exhaustive search of the literature, which revealed over 400 articles on EE; however, most were reported in gastroenterology or autoimmune specialty journals. We report a case of eosinophilic esophagitis in a 39-year-old man who presented with persistent epigastric abdominal pain and who was diagnosed via endoscopy and biopsy.