Eve Glazier, M.D., and Elizabeth Ko, M.D. Dear Doctor: Why do the elderly often have a hard time swallowing, and sometimes experience a feeling that food is stuck in their throats? I heard there's a ...

Q: Why do the elderly often have a hard time swallowing, and sometimes experience a feeling that food is stuck in their throats? I heard there’s a procedure to stretch the throat. Does it help? A: The ...

The esophageal sphincters are bands of muscles at the top and bottom of the esophagus — the muscular tube that passes food and drink from the mouth to the stomach. Esophageal sphincters open and close ...

Q: A friend of ours was told he has a “nutcracker esophagus”? What does that mean? A: A nutcracker esophagus is one of several esophageal disorders where the normal orderly muscular contractions that ...

Esophageal spasms occur when the esophagus contracts abnormally, and they can be painful and uncomfortable. When they happen, the movement of food and drink toward the stomach is disrupted and less ...

Dear Doctor: Why do the elderly often have a hard time swallowing, and sometimes experience a feeling that food is stuck in their throats? I heard there’s a procedure to stretch the throat. Does it ...