Achalasia is listed as a "rare disease" by the Office of Rare Diseases (ORD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This means that Achalasia, or a subtype of Achalasia, affects less than 200,000 people in the US population.
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Esophageal diverticula are due to primary muscular abnormalities that may be congenital or to inflammatory processes adjacent to the esophagus. Zenker’s diverticulum occurs when the pouch results from increased intraesophageal pressure; traction diverticulum occurs when the pouch is pulled out by adjacent inflamed tissue or lymph nodes. Some authorities classify all diverticula as traction diverticula.
Zenker’s diverticulum results from developmental muscular weakness of the posterior pharynx above the border of the cricopharyngeal muscle. The pressure of swallowing aggravates this weakness, as does contraction of the pharynx before relaxation of the sphincter. A midesophageal (traction) diverticulum is a response to scarring and pulling on esophageal walls by an external inflammatory process such as tuberculosis. An epiphrenic diverticulum (rare) is generally right-sided and usually accompanies an esophageal motor disturbance, such as esophageal spasm or achalasia. It’s thought to be caused by traction and pulsation.
Most diverticula occur in middle-aged and elderly patients. Zenker’s diverticula most commonly in patients older than age 50 and are especially prevalent in patients in their 70s and 80s.
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
The term 'prevalence' of Achalasia usually refers to the estimated population of people who are managing Achalasia at any given time. The term 'incidence' of Achalasia refers to the annual diagnosis rate, or the number of new cases of Achalasia diagnosed each year. Hence, these two statistics types can differ: a short-lived disease like flu can have high annual incidence but low prevalence, but a life-long disease like diabetes has a low annual incidence but high prevalence. For more information see about prevalence and incidence statistics.
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