Eosinophilic esophagitis: concepts, controversies, and evidence.

Eosinophilic esophagitis has become a prominent chronic esophageal disorder in clinical pediatric and adult gastroenterology. Its manifestations are protean in childhood, but dysphagia predominates the clinical presentation in adults. Adverse immune responsiveness to dietary antigens underlies most cases, as is reflected in clinical and histologic remission with appropriate diet management in the majority, although an understanding of the mechanisms underlying the inflammatory process remains incomplete. Intense investigations to explain the underpinnings of the disorder and to discover effective therapy are ongoing.