Case Report

Conservative management for an esophageal perforation in a patient presented with delayed diagnosis: a case report

Konstantinos Tsalis¹ , Konstantinos Blouhos¹ , Dimitrios Kapetanos² , Theodore Kontakiotis³ and Charalampos Lazaridis¹

¹  4th Surgical Department, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, George Papanikolaou Str, Thessaloniki, 57010, Greece

²  Gastroenterological Department, "G. Papanikolaou" General Hospital, George Papanikolaou Str, Thessaloniki, 57010, Greece

³  Respiratory Department, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, George Papanikolaou Str, Thessaloniki, 57010, Greece

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Cases Journal 2009, 2:164doi:10.1186/1757-1626-2-164

Published:	22 October 2009

Abstract

Background

Esophageal perforation is a serious condition with a high mortality rate. Successful therapy depends on the size of the rupture; the time elapsed between rupture and diagnosis, and the underlying health of the patient. Common causes of esophageal perforation include medical instrumentation, foreign-body ingestion, and trauma.

Case report

A case of esophageal perforation due to fish bone ingestion in a 67-year-old male is described here, with a review of the pertinent literature. The patient presented with chest pain, fever and right-sided pleural effusion. Initial evaluation was nondiagnostic. The water-soluble contrast swallow test showed no evidence of leakage. Computed tomography scan demonstrated a pneumomediastinum, and right-sided hydropneumothorax.

Conclusion

The patient was successfully treated using conservative measures.