[Bucco-pharyngeal and esophageal localizations in Crohn's disease]

A case of upper esophageal stenosis associated with pharyngeal lesions in Crohn's disease is reported. The esophageal stricture was intractable by endoscopic dilatation. This patient was managed successfully by total esophagectomy. The left colon was used to replace the esophagus through a posterior mediastinal route. Histologically, the lesions were epithelioid granulomas with ulcerative fissurations and submucosal lymphoid nodules and were suggestive of Crohn's disease involving the upper esophagus and pharynx only. Similar cases involving only the upper digestive tract with pathologic proof have not yet been reported in the literature.