• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.95-106
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• 1990

Between May 1979 and April 1989, 213 patients with esophageal injuries visited the Department of the Thoracic and cardiovascular surgery Department, Yonsei University College of Medicine. There were 159 non perforated esophageal injuries accompanied by hematemesis, and 54 perforated esophageal injuries. The causes of non perforated esophageal injuries were Mallory-Weise Syndrome [%], corrosive esophagitis [54], esophageal carcinoma [4], foreign bodies [2], sclerotherapy due to esophageal varices [3]. The causes of perforated esophageal injuries were esophageal anastomosis[13], malignancies[17], esophagoscopy or bougienage[5], chest trauma[5], foreign bodies[5], paraesophageal surgery[3], others[6] In esophageal perforation due to foreign bodies, esophagoscopy or bougienage, there were 6 cervical esophageal perforations and 9 thoracic esophageal perforations. There were no mortalities in the treatment of the cervical esophageal perforations and 5 deaths resulted in the treatment of 9 thoracic esophageal perforations. And four of six patients with thoracic esophageal perforations died in the initiation of treatment over 24 hours, after trauma. There were another 12 deaths in the patients with chest trauma, malignancies or chronic inflammation except esophageal injuries due to foreign bodies or instruments during the hospital stay or less than 30 days after esophageal injuries. One patient with esophageal carcinoma died due to bleeding and respiratory failure after irradiation. Another patient with esophago gastrostomy due to esophageal carcinoma died of sepsis due to EG site leakage. One patient with a mastectomy due to breast cancer followed by irradiation died of sepsis due to an esophagopleural fistula. Two patients with Mallory-Weiss syndrome died; of hemorrhagic shock in one and of respiratory failure due to massive transfusion in the other. One patient with TEF died of respiratory failure and another died of pneumonia and respiratory failure. One patient with esophageal perforation due to blunt chest trauma died of brain damage accompanied with chest trauma.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.45-47
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• 2011

Esophageal perforation due to blunt trauma is rare. A 67-year-old male presented to Konyang University Hospital with painful neck swelling. His neck was injured by blunt trauma at work. Esophageal perforation was detected by neck CT and esophagography. We performed primary repair of cervical esophagus through the Lt. neck approach. The postoperative course was uneventful and the patient was discharged at postoperative day 15.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.43-47
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• 1994

Prompt recognition and proper treatment of esophageal perforation or rupture may ax~ert death or minimize complications. We have experienced sixteen patients of esophageal perforation at the department of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery, Hallym Medical college during the period fromJan. 1986 to Sep. 1993. The ratio between male and female patient was 13:3 and their age ranged from 23 years to 67 years old. The major cause of esophageal perforations was spontaneous rupture in 7 cases[45%], surgical trauma in 2 cases[12%], instrumental trauma in 2 cases[12%], and others in 5 cases[31%]. The common site of esophageal perforation was in the lower third portion of the esophagus[10 cases, 62%]. The most consistent symptom of esophageal perforation was chest pain in 11 cases, temperature elevation within a few hours was 9 cases.Contrast roentgenographic studies demonstrated the perforation in all but 2 of the 16 patients. The frequent complications of esophageal perforation were empyema in 7 cases[45 %] and mediastinitis in 2 cases[12%]. fourteen patients had suture closure and drainage with 2 deaths, and 2 patient received only drainage procedures. The mortality rate was 12%[2 cases] and cause of death was sepsis and aortic rupture.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.316-318
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• 2013

Rupture of the esophagus after blunt trauma is a rare event. But any type of esophageal rupture has the high morbidity and mortality rate. In these situations, the sign and symptom of the esophageal rupture is subtle and nonspecific; therefore, the physicians are usually not suspicious. Delaying in diagnosis prevents proper treatment (surgical or non-surgical) before significant complications occurred. We report a case of a cervical esophageal perforation with primary repair and drainage after blunt trauma.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.68-71
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• 1994

A tracheo-esophageal fistula following from blunt chest trauma is one of less common lesion and few guidelines are available to direct its optimal management. Herein, we report a 24-year-old man injured in a motor vehicular accident sustained a nonpenetrating double blowout injury of the thorax and large tracheoesophageal fistula occurred. Tracheal defect required resection and reconstruction, of which the membranous portion underwent closure with borrowed adjacent esophageal wall primarily and substernal left colon interposition was performed 4 weeks later.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.278-282
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• 2012

An esophageal perforation following anterior cervical fusion is rare. Early development of an esophageal perforation after anterior cervical fusion is usually due to iatrogenic injury from retraction, injury associated with the original traumatic incident, improperly placed instruments or a bone graft. A 31-year-old man had a cervical dislocation and spinal cord injury because of severe cervical trauma after a traffic accident. He was quadriplegic and had no feeling below T4 dermatome. Anterior decompression of the cervical spine and anterior fusion with mesh with autobone were performed. An esophagocutaneous fistula occurred 7 days after anterior cervical surgery. A second anterior surgery was done because of pus drainage. The mesh was changed with an iliac bone graft, and the esophagocutaneous fistula site was primary repaired, but pus continued to drain. Conservative treatment, which consisted of wound drainage and intravenous administration of antibiotics, was tried, but was unsuccessful. After all, we removed the plate and screws, but did not removed the iliac bone graft, We closed the esophageal fistula, and transposed the sternocleidomastoid muscle flap to the interspace between the esophagus and the cervical spine. The wound to the esophagus was well repaired. In conclusion, precautionary measures are needed to avoid the complication, and adequate treatment is necessary to resolve those complications when they occur.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.169-174
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• 1988

Thoracic esophageal rupture caused by blunt trauma is often not recognized until late because of the vague symptoms in the initial state as well as its rare incidence, which can easily lead to fulminant mediastinitis with frequent fatal outcome. Once extensive mediastinitis occurs, the primary surgical repair of the esophageal tear is considered to be practically impossible. Various methods have been proposed for the management of these desperately ill patients, but no one provides an acceptable good result yet. The purpose of this article is to report the successful result obtained in the treatment of a patient with fulminant mediastinitis from traumatic esophageal rupture by continuous transesophageal irrigation. A 27 year-old male patient was brought to the emergency room of our hospital complaining of dyspnea and chest pain after blunt trauma. The diagnosis of esophageal rupture in the thorax was made late, about 46 hours after the initial injury, when mediastinitis had already progressed. The transesophageal irrigation method was immediately instituted which consisted of profuse transesophageal irrigation of the mediastinum with orally ingested fluid and/or by Levin tube, positioned proximal to the site of the rupture, and drainage of the irrigation fluid by thoracoscopically accurately positioned chest tubes connected to a well suctioning system. With subsiding inflammatory signs and symptoms, the esophagogram, obtained 54 days after the treatment, showed no evidence of the mediastinal leakage of contrast material which contrasted previous esophagograms with definitive dye collections in the mediastinum. Additional endoscopic finding confirmed complete healing of the esophageal mucosa, previously ruptured. He has been followed up without any problem until recently, 6 months after discharge.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.115-121
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• 1990

We have experienced twenty-eight patients of esophageal perforation at the department of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery, Seoul National University Hospital during the period from Jan. 1957 to Jun. 1989. The ratio between male and female patients was 17:11, and their age ranged from 2 years to 61 years old. [average: 30.4 years old] The cause of esophageal perforation were instrumental trauma in 9 cases, caustic perforation in 6 cases, spontaneous perforation in 6 cases, surgical trauma in 2 cases, and others in 5 cases. The most frequent location of perforation was in the lower third portion of the esophagus [13 case, 46 %]. Patients complained of chest pain [86 %], dyspnea [57 %], fever [57 %], subcutaneous emphysema [43 %], and others. The frequent complications of esophageal perforation were empyema [13 cases, 46 %] and mediastinitis [11 cases, 39 %]. The first treatment was supportive care in 3 cases, primary closure and reinforced procedures in 13 cases with 3 deaths, open drainage in 5 cases with 2 deaths, diversion in 4 cases with 2 deaths and closed thoracostomy drainage in 3 cases. After the first treatment, 6 patients received multi-staged operations for several months. Overall mortality was 25 %, and the most frequent cause of death was sepsis[57 %]. We thought that factors affecting the outcome of esophageal perforation are;[1] early diagnosis and adequacy in the first treatment, [2] intensive perioperative management including multi-stage surgical approach, [3] patient`s condition at the diagnosis

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.26 no.8
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• pp.661-663
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• 1993

We have experienced 6 cases of esophageal perforation from September, 1988 to June, 1993, in the department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Chungang Univesity Hospital and obtained the following results. The number of male patients was 5, and female 1.The causes of esophageal perforations were spontaneous, post-emetic in 2 cases, spur of cervical spine in 1 case, foreign body in 1 case, surgical trauma in 1 case and blunt trauma in 1 case. Perforation developed in cervical esophagus in I case,and others in distal third of the esophagus. One case needed only conservative treatment, and others needed surgical intervention minor or major. There were 2 mortality cases, and 2 cases healed satisfactorily without complication, 2 cases had complications that needed reoperations.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.264-269
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• 2001

흉부 둔상에 의한 기도와 식도의 동시적 파열상은 매우 드물게 발생되고 있다. 그러나 최그들어 고속 교통사고의 증가와 환자에 대한 응급체계의 발전으로 점차 치험 보고례가 증가되고 있다. 저자들은 흉부의 둔상에 의하여 기도와 식도에 종적으로 긴 파열상을 입은 환자 2례의 치험을 보고한다. 1례는 이전 병원에서 시행한 기관식도 재건술이 실패한 상태에서 전원되어와 2차적으로 식도절제 및 기관재건술을 실시하였으나 사망하였고. 다른 1례는 식도절제 및 기도재건술로 합병증이 없이 생존하였다.