title: Gastric substitution for resectable carcinoma of the esophagus: an analysis of 368 cases.
abstract: Between 1974 and 1984, 1,188 patients with esophageal malignancies were treated in the Division of Thoracic Surgery of Veterans General Hospital, Taipei. The rate of resectability was 42.6%. Since 1974, the stomach has been used as esophageal substitute, and through 1984, a total of 368 patients were collected. The routes of reconstruction included retrosternal (77.2%), posteromediastinal (7.1%), and intrathoracic (15.7%). The rates of postoperative complications and surgical mortality in these 368 patients were 26.3% and 6.5%, respectively. Leakage of anastomosis was the most frequent complication. The incidence of stricture of esophagogastrostomy was 25.5%. All strictures were relieved by esophageal dilations. An average of 3.9 esophageal dilations were performed per patient (range, 1 to 15). Radical lymph node dissection was not routinely performed in our series. The actuarial 2-year and 5-year survival rates were 26.4% and 7.6%, respectively. Among 76 patients undergoing cervical esophagogastrostomy and surviving for more than 1 year, late complications occurred as follows: acid/bile regurgitation, 46.1%; postprandial fullness of abdomen, 38.2%; dumping syndrome, 13.2%; distended stomach with dyspnea, 11.8%; aspiration pneumonia, 6.6%; and gastric ulcer, 6.6%. Moreover, compared with patients without pyloroplasty, those with pyloroplasty were found to have a higher incidence of bile regurgitation (55.5% versus 8.6%), dumping syndrome (33.3% versus 6.9%), aspiration pneumonia (16.7% versus 3.4%), and gastric ulcer (22.2% versus 1.7%).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
authors.forename: L S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: B S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: K Y
authors.initials: KY
authors.lastname: Chien
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000601:surgery*; D002423:Cause of Death; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D016629:Esophagectomy; D004947:Esophagus / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000401:mortality*; D013270:Stomach / Q000601:surgery*