• OESOPHAGITIS

Lymphocytic oesophagitis, an only recently described pathological entity (Rubio et al 1 2006), was reviewed in Gut in 2012.2 Its histology is characterised by a predominantly peripapillary lymphocytic infiltrate in the oesophageal mucosa with the absence of significant granulocytes. Studies into over 200 patients with this condition2 ,3 including a recent letter by Ronkainen et al 4 2012, suggest that the clinical manifestations of this condition appear to be mild. Approximately half of patients with symptoms have gastro-oesophageal reflux, and two-thirds have dysphagia.3

Here we describe a spontaneous oesophageal perforation associated with lymphocytic oesophagitis. A previously well 35-year-old woman presented to the emergency department …