Esophageal Conditions & Treatments

We find the treatment that meets your needs and health goals, from injections to minimally invasive surgery.

During this outpatient procedure, our team inserts an endoscope to inject a solution into the esophageal sphincter. The solution causes temporary muscle paralysis, which improves swallowing disorders such as achalasia.

Some conditions can cause the esophagus to develop tight bands called strictures, which narrow the esophagus. Strictures make it difficult or impossible for food to pass.

Esophageal dilation involves cutting the strictures to widen the esophagus. Dilation can help relieve symptoms of swallowing disorders and chronic heartburn. Strictures may come back, requiring additional procedures.

If you have trouble swallowing (achalasia) or a spastic esophagus, we may use an inpatient endoscopic procedure called POEM. We insert a flexible tube (endoscope) through the mouth and into the throat. We make a small incision in the esophageal lining to cut the outer wall of the muscle near the sphincter. The incision permanently loosens the sphincter, making it easier to swallow.

We perform endoscopies to both diagnose and treat esophageal conditions. We thread a flexible scope with a camera through the mouth and into the esophagus. The images from the scope allow our team to determine if you have an esophageal condition.

We can also attach surgical tools to the endoscope to perform several procedures without the need for incisions.

Fundoplication is a surgical procedure to treat gastrointestinal reflux disease (GERD) and hiatal hernias. During a laparoscopic fundoplication, we use minimally invasive tools to tie the upper part of the stomach around the end of the esophagus. The knot prevents digestive acid from backing up into the esophagus, relieving the symptoms of GERD.

Cedars-Sinai is one of a few centers in the U.S. to offer incisionless fundoplication, an advanced, scarless approach to treating GERD.