The Relationship Between Upper Esophageal Sphincter Pressure and Psychological Status in Patients with Globus Sensation

OBJECTIVE: To explore the correlation between changes in esophageal pressure and psychological status in patients with globus sensation. METHODS: A total of 40 patients with globus sensation who attended Wenzhou People’s Hospital between August 2020 and February 2021 were divided into two groups based on the results of esophageal manometry: a high-pressure group and a non-high-pressure group. The duration of disease, clinical symptom score, and self-rating anxiety scale (SAS) were compared between the two groups to determine the relationship between changes in esophageal pressure and psychological status. RESULTS: All the patients before treatment were divided into a high-pressure group (n = 14) and a non-high-pressure group (n = 26) according to whether the resting pressure of the upper esophageal sphincter (UES) was greater than 104 mmHg. The differences between the high-pressure group and non-high-pressure group in duration of disease, clinical symptom score, and SAS were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). Anxiety was present in 12 patients in the high-pressure group and two patients in the non-high-pressure group. The difference between the the high-pressure group and non-high-pressure group in the incidence of anxiety was statistically significant (χ(2) = 21.04 and P < 0.001). Pearson correlation analysis of the association between esophageal pressure and anxiety resulted in R = 0.74 and P < 0.001. CONCLUSION: Patients with globus sensation who develop anxiety were more likely to have high pressure in the upper esophageal sphincter.