HYPOTHESIS Laparoscopic Heller myotomy with anterior hemifundoplication is the surgical procedure of choice for the treatment of esophageal achalasia. Specific factors, eg, severity of esophageal body deformity, might affect postoperative outcome. DESIGN Prospective case-control study. SETTING Academic referral center for gastrointestinal tract motility disorders. PATIENTS Twenty-nine pat...

PURPOSE Despite aggressive chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, or combination approaches, the survival rate of patients with esophageal cancer remains poor. Recent studies have suggested that constitutive activation of the Hedgehog (Hh) pathway in cancers of the digestive tract may contribute to the growth and maintenance of cancer. However, the relationship between Hh signaling and therapeuti...

Achalasia is a rare esophageal motility disorder that is characterized by a loss of peristalsis in the distal esophagus and failure of lower esophageal sphincter relaxation. The risk of developing esophageal motility disorders, including achalasia, following bariatric surgery is controversial and differs based on the type of surgery. Most of the reported cases occurred with laparoscopic adjusta...

Esophageal perforation continues to be a difficult diagnostic and management problem. Recommendations regarding treatment remain controversial. 17 patients with perforation of the esophagus were retrospectively reviewed at the Thoracic Surgery Unit of Imam Khomeini Hospital between 1981 and 1992. The majority of the injuries involved the thoracic esophagus (10 or 59%), followed by the cerv...

Most cases of esophageal cancer and colorectal cancer in Taiwan are diagnosed in the advanced stage and treated by surgery or concurrent chemoirradiation. The detection rates of early esophageal cancer and early colorectal cancer are still low in Taiwan. Metachronous early esophageal cancer and early colorectal cancer have rarely been reported. Endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) is a well-estab...

Long gap esophageal atresia with or without tracheo-esophageal fistula may require feeding gastrostomy as a part of staged reconstruction.[1] We have devised a technique to secure/anchor the feeding gastrostomy (Stamm gastrostomy) more easily and safely. Five neonates underwent feeding gastrostomy by this technique. Out of five patients, four patients had tracheo-esophageal fistula with long ga...

Carcinosarcoma of the esophagus is a malignant neoplasm involving both carcinomatous and sarcomatous components. We report a patient with true esophageal carcinosarcoma who underwent laparoscopy-assisted surgery. An upper gastrointestinal barium study revealed a lobulated intraluminal filling defect in the lower intrathoracic esophagus. The patient underwent esophagectomy and regional lymphaden...