title: Congenital bronchoesophageal fistula in a patient with Crohn's disease: a cautionary tale.
abstract: We present the case of a young lady suffering from Crohn's disease who was diagnosed as having a disabling bronchoesophageal fistula. This was mistakenly thought to be due to the Crohn's disease, and surgery was declined for fear of further complications. She required multiple admissions for frequent chest infections. At review, 5 years later for a second opinion, the fistula was deemed congenital in origin. The fistula was successfully resected, and the histology confirmed the diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Blackpool Victoria Hospital, Blackpool, United Kingdom. sdevbhandari@aol.com
authors.forename: Mohan P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Devbhandari
authors.forename: Lucia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Raco
authors.forename: Mark T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Hendrickse
authors.forename: Andrew J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Duncan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001983:Bronchial Fistula / Q000151:congenital* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000601:surgery*; D004937:Esophageal Fistula / Q000151:congenital* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016896:Treatment Outcome