Bacterial esophagitis: an often forgotten cause of odynophagia

Bacterial esophagitis is uncommon and has not been well characterized. We present a patient who fulfills the strict definition of bacterial esophagitis set forth by Walsh: "histopathologically demonstrable bacterial invasion of esophageal mucosa or deeper layers with no concomitant fungal, viral, or neoplastic involvement or previous surgery of the esophagus." Bacterial esophagitis should be considered in all immunocompromised patients presenting with odynophagia; however, its occurrence in association with human immunodeficiency virus infection has not yet been reported. Bacterial esophagitis can be a source of occult sepsis and requires different therapy than the other forms of infectious esophagitis.