SciELO - Scientific Electronic Library Online

 
vol.110 número4Lesión de Dieulafoy en divertículo duodenal. Una causa infrecuente de HDAShunt venoso portosistémico: fístula porto-cava en paciente con cirrosis biliar secundaria a hepatectomía derecha por hidatidosis índice de autoresíndice de materiabúsqueda de artículos
Home Pagelista alfabética de revistas  

Servicios Personalizados

Revista

Articulo

Indicadores

Links relacionados

  • En proceso de indezaciónCitado por Google
  • No hay articulos similaresSimilares en SciELO
  • En proceso de indezaciónSimilares en Google

Compartir


Revista Española de Enfermedades Digestivas

versión impresa ISSN 1130-0108

Rev. esp. enferm. dig. vol.110 no.4 Madrid abr. 2018

https://dx.doi.org/10.17235/reed.2018.5161/2017 

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Intrathoracic leak after an Ivor Lewis procedure for an esophageal neoplasm treated with a stent

Natalia Afonso-Luis1  , María-Asunción Acosta-Mérida1  , Joaquín Marchena-Gómez1 

1Servicio de Cirugía General y del Aparato Digestivo. Hospital Universitario de Gran Canaria Doctor Negrín. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, España

Key words:  Leak; Esophageal; Stent

Dear Editor,

A 75-year-old patient with a history of ischemic heart disease, COPD and obesity underwent an Ivor Lewis-type distal esophagectomy with an esophagogastric anastomosis. Following an esophagogram on the 5th postoperative day, a contrast medium leak was observed which prompted a revision surgery. A 5-7 mm defect was found and repaired using a primary suture. A follow-up endoscopy revealed two leakage sites. A new attempt was made to repair the defect using diaphragmatic pleural interposition. He was transferred to our institution on the 72nd day after surgery and an upper digestive endoscopy was performed which revealed a 2.5 cm gap in the wall, for which a stent was placed. Although there was an initial clinical improvement, the patient relapsed with early-stage renal failure and poor hemodynamics, which prompted a new surgical procedure. The stent was exposed within the cavity (Fig. 1) and an esophagogastric anastomosis with GI disconnection was performed. The procedure was rounded up with cervical esophagostomy. The postoperative course was slowly favorable with sepsis resolution.

Fig. 1 Stent exposed within the cavity. 

Discussion

Intrathoracic leakage is the most significant complication after esophageal surgery, with an incidence ranging from 3% to 25% according to various series. Multiple factors influence the management of this condition; patient clinical status, location, defect size and shorter time to diagnosis are the most important 1.

Establishing a specific regimen to resolve an Ivor Lewis-related intrathoracic leak is challenging. Stents provide better results when the time from diagnosis to stent placement is shorter and when the leakage size is smaller than 20 mm 2. While endoscopic techniques may contribute to resolving the issue in some cases, gastrointestinal disconnection may ultimately become the patient's only remaining option.

Bibliografía

1. Rodrigues-Pinto E, Pereira P, Ribeiro A, et al. Self-expanding metal stents in postoperative esophageal leaks. Rev Esp Enferm Dig 2016;108(3):133-7. DOI: 10.17235/reed.2016.3987/2015 [ Links ]

2. Fernández A, González-Carrera V, González-Portela C, et al. Fully covered metal stents for the treatment of leaks after gastric and esophageal surgery. Rev Esp Enferm Dig 2015;107(10):608-13. DOI: 10.17235/reed.2015.3765/2015 [ Links ]

3. Kim RH, Takabe K. Methods of esophagogastric anastomoses following esophagectomy for cancer: a systematic review. J Surg Oncol 2010;101:527-33. DOI: 10.1002/jso.21510 [ Links ]

4. Kauer W, Stein H, Dirtier H, et al. Stent implantation as a treatment option in patients with thoracic anastomotic leaks after esophagectomy. Surg Endosc 2008;22:50-5. DOI: 10.1007/s00464-007-9504-5 [ Links ]

5. Leers J, Vivaldi C, Schafer H, et al. Endoscopic therapy for esophageal perforation or anastomotic leak with a self-expandable metallic stent. Surg Endosc 2009;23:2258-62. DOI: 10.1007/s00464-008-0302-5 [ Links ]