Eosinophilic esophagitis: update 2012

Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) with adults, as a new disease emerging during the last decade, is a clinicopathologic disorder of the esophagus characterized by a dense esophageal eosinophilic infiltration and typical esophageal symptoms. As numerous studies about EoE had been reported during last several years, updated consensus of EoE was reported in July 2011. The conceptual definition of EoE is coming. EoE is defined as a chronic, immune/antigen-mediated esophageal disease characterized clinically by symptoms related to esophageal dysfunction and histologically by eosinophil-predominat inflammation. Other important addition is genotyping feature that implicates thymic stromal lymphopoietin genes or filagrrin as EoE susceptibility genes. The majority of patients has the concurrent allergic disease, especially food or aeroallergen sensitization. Main therapeutic options include topical steroids and dietary modification. Recent issues of EoE include a new concept for proton pump inhibitor-responsive esophageal eosinophilia that it should be excluded to diagnose EoE.