Health Tip: What May Be Causing Painful Swallowing

(HealthDay News) -- Eating is no fun if it hurts to swallow. Uncomfortable squeezing or burning could be felt anywhere from the upper neck to behind the breastbone.

The U.S. National Library of Medicine list these possible causes of difficult swallowing:

• A number of different infections, from thrush to herpes simplex.
• An abscess or infection in the teeth.
• Ulcers in the throat or mouth.
• An inflamed esophagus.
• Having an object lodged in the throat.
• Esophageal abnormalities.