The longer the interval between symptom onset and the diagnosis of eosinophilic esophagitis, the greater the chance that the patient will have developed esophageal strictures, according to a report in the December issue of Gastroenterology (doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2013.08.015).
In a retrospective study of 523 cases of eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) recorded in a national Swiss database, patients "were likely to present with purely inflammatory endoscopic EoE features early in the disease course and then progress to develop fibrotic endoscopic features, in addition to inflammatory features," said Dr. Alain M. Schoepfer of the division of gastroenerology and hepatology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois, Lausanne, Switzerland, and his associates.
Moreover, an additional analysis of numerous potential disease-, environmental-, and patient-related risk factors demonstrated that the length of diagnostic delay is the single strongest risk factor for stricture formation, the investigators noted.
The natural history of untreated EoE has not been investigated extensively, and data regarding stricture formation are particularly lacking. In addition, eosinophilic esophagitis has long been associated with a substantial delay in diagnosis, with a median of 5 years elapsing between symptom onset and correct identification of the disorder.
Dr. Schoepfer and his colleagues examined the relationship between the duration of untreated disease (before EoE was diagnosed) and the prevalence of esophageal stricture using a database with detailed medical records of 323 patients they personally diagnosed and treated plus 200 others who were diagnosed and treated by other gastroenterologists throughout Switzerland. The database included the results from numerous biopsies of the proximal and distal esophagus for every patient, as well as information on 98 clinical factors that might influence stricture formation.
The median diagnostic delay was 6 years (range, 0 to more than 20 years).
Strictures were present at diagnosis in 75 patients (37.5%).
Features of active inflammation, such as edema, furrows, and whitish exudates, were present in 79.5% of patients while features of fibrotic activity, such as strictures, rings, and crepe-paper esophagus, were seen in 63.0%.
The prevalence of fibrotic features including strictures increased with increasing duration of diagnostic delay. This prevalence was 46.5% among patients who were diagnosed as having EoE within 0-2 years of symptom onset, rising to 87.5% among those diagnosed 20 years or more after symptom onset.
In contrast, the prevalence of inflammatory features alone decreased with increasing duration of diagnostic delay.
The prevalence of esophageal strictures likewise correlated with diagnostic delay. It was 17.2% among patients diagnosed within 0-2 years of symptom onset, compared with 70.8% among those diagnosed 20 years or more after symptom onset, the investigators said.
The prevalence of strictures did not differ by patient age at diagnosis. It was comparable between patients who were diagnosed before they reached 20 years of age and those diagnosed after age 20. The prevalence of strictures also did not differ between the 323 patients diagnosed and treated by Dr. Schoepfer and his associates, who were managed according to a strict standardized protocol, and the 200 other patients who were managed by numerous other gastroenterologists according to their own individual practice preferences.
In an analysis of nearly 100 potential risk factors for stricture formation, only the length of diagnostic delay was found to be significantly associated with the presence of strictures at diagnosis.
These findings demonstrate that a patient’s disease course "is a continuum – a march from a disease predominantly inflammatory in nature to a disease with endoscopic fibrotic features, including strictures, in addition to existing inflammation," the researchers said.
Clinicians should make every effort to reduce the delay in diagnosis of EoE, they added.
This study was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation. No relevant financial conflicts of interest were reported.