Chest pain in achalasia: Patient characteristics and clinical course Volker F. Eckardt, Bernd Stauf, Gudrun Bernhard  Gastroenterology  Volume 116, Issue 6, Pages 1300-1304 (June 1999) DOI: 10.1016/S0016-5085(99)70493-2 Copyright © 1999 American Gastroenterological Association Terms and Conditions

Fig. 1 Probability of unaltered and remaining chest pain during long-term follow-up. Upper curve illustrates that the complete disappearance of chest pain is a rare clinical event (A, corresponding number of patients at risk). However, over the course of several years, some improvement in chest pain frequency will occur in most patients (lower curve, B). Gastroenterology 1999 116, 1300-1304DOI: (10.1016/S0016-5085(99)70493-2) Copyright © 1999 American Gastroenterological Association Terms and Conditions

Fig. 2 Probability of unimproved chest pain after effective therapy. Although such therapy leads to almost complete disappearance of dysphagia and regurgitation, a significant proportion of treated patients will still complain about episodic chest pain for a few years. Gastroenterology 1999 116, 1300-1304DOI: (10.1016/S0016-5085(99)70493-2) Copyright © 1999 American Gastroenterological Association Terms and Conditions