Achalasia is a rare neurogenic motility disorder of the esophagus, occurring in approximately 0.11 cases per 100,000 children. The combination of problems (aperistalsis, hypertensive lower esophageal sphincter (LES), and lack of receptive LES relaxation) results in patients having symptoms of progressive dysphagia, weight loss, and regurgitation. Treatment modalities have evolved over the past few decades from balloon dilation and botulinum toxin injection to laparoscopic Heller myotomy and endoscopic myotomy. Most data on achalasia management is extrapolated to children from adult experience. This article describes understanding of the pathogenesis and discusses newer therapeutic techniques as well as controversies in management.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1053/j.sempedsurg.2017.02.001 | DOI Listing |
Cureus
January 2025
Anesthesiology and Reanimation, Military Hospital of Avicenne, Marrakech, MAR.
Infectious myocarditis (IM) and infective endocarditis (IE), sometimes associated with infection of the surrounding mediastinal tissue or embolic complications caused by residual implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) lead material embedded in the ventricle, present a significant challenge for cardiac surgeons due to the difficulty of precisely locating the old intracardiac pacing lead remnants because of the heart's continuous movement. We present the case of successful two-stage elective sternotomy extraction of two residual defibrillator leads, one trapped in the left innominate vein, easily removed after veinotomy without cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB), and the other embedded intramyocardially in the inferior wall of the right ventricle, successfully removed under CPB after fluoroscopic guidance. The patient was discharged four weeks post-operation without complications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSurg Laparosc Endosc Percutan Tech
January 2025
Department of Surgery, Division of Gastrointestinal Surgery, University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa, FL.
Background: Peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) is a well-established endoscopic treatment for achalasia, utilizing an endoscopic knife for dissection. Recently, new knives with an integrated water-jet (WJ) function have been introduced. This study aims to compare the technical, perioperative, and late postoperative outcomes between WJ knives and conventional (C) knives, which lack the WJ function, through a pairwise meta-analysis of published comparative studies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSurg Laparosc Endosc Percutan Tech
January 2025
Department of Surgery, Division of Gastrointestinal Surgery, University of South Florida, Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa, FL.
Background And Aims: Several studies have hypothesized that sparing the oblique/sling fibers during posterior peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) may reduce the incidence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and reflux esophagitis without compromising the established safety and efficacy of the procedure. This study compares perioperative, postoperative motility-related, and postoperative GERD-related outcomes between posterior oblique/sling fibers-sparing POEM (OFS-POEM) and conventional posterior POEM through a pairwise meta-analysis of comparative studies.
Methods: We conducted a systematic literature review following PRISMA guidelines to identify articles directly comparing posterior OFS-POEM with conventional posterior POEM.
JAMA Netw Open
January 2025
Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Importance: Patients with achalasia face a higher risk of developing esophageal cancer (EC), but the surveillance strategies for these patients remain controversial due to the long disease duration and the lack of identified risk factors.
Objective: To investigate the prevalence of esophageal Candida infection among patients with achalasia and to assess the association of Candida infection with EC risk within this population.
Design, Setting, And Participants: This retrospective cohort study included patients with achalasia diagnosed at or referred for treatment and monitoring to the Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, between January 1, 1980, and May 31, 2024.
Surg Endosc
January 2025
Department of Gastroenterology, The General Hospital of Western Theater Command, Chengdu, 610083, Sichuan, China.
Background: Achalasia is a primary esophageal motility disorder, which shows impaired relaxation of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) and the absence of peristalsis, leading to dysphagia, weight loss, and chest pain. In recent years, peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) has become a popular method for treating achalasia. However, the effectiveness and safety of full-thickness myotomy (FTM) versus circular muscle myotomy (CMM) in POEM require further investigation.
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