title: [Application of portable esophageal dilator in treatment of esophageal stenosis at home].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore an economical protocol for esophageal stenosis treatment at home and evaluate the effects of portable esophageal dilator.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty-seven patients with esophageal stenosis were treated at home by themselves with portable esophageal dilator, which was designed by Prof Wang HT, one of the authors. Twenty-nine cases of esophageal stenosis were caused by chemical damage, 23 cases by esophageal tumor, 13 postoperation cases with hypopharyngeal and upper esophageal tumor and two cases by laryngeal thyroid gland recurrent tumor. Stricture happened at esophageal entrance and upper segment in 15 cases, at middle in 32 cases, both at middle and upper in 17 cases and at whole length of esophagus in three cases. Stricture was not complete atresia and dilators could insert into esophagus in all patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significant effects were found in 43 patients and good effects in 24 patients. Seven deaths were caused by remote metastasis of recurrent cancer resulting in multiple organ failure or large blood vessels bleeding resulting of tumor erosion. Follow-up visit ranged from the shortest period of four months to the longest period of five years and 1 month, 9.8 months on average.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Family portable dilator and self-catering dilation is an effective and safe method for treating esophageal stenosis. It is so simple, convenient, painless with low expense that it is especially useful in countryside hospitals and undeveloped rural areas.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Shandong Binzhou Central Hospital, Binzhou, 251700, China.
authors.forename: Yuanxin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.forename: Hongtian
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Zhaohui
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Xuesong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Bingzhangz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Yongjian
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Shude
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D004106:Dilatation / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004940:Esophageal Stenosis / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult