Objective To review the clinical experience of Heller myotomy for treatment of achalasia through a small thoracotomy. Methods Twenty-five patients with achalasia (9 moderate, 16 severe) underwent Heller myotomy without concomitant antireflux procedure through a small incision. A left thoracotomy was carried out through either the seventh or eighth intercostals space. The length of skin incision was 6 to 8 cm. Results There was no hospital death and severe postoperative complications. The mean operating time was 50 minutes. Mean hospital stay was 10 days. There was one intraoperative perforation and repaired successfully. All patients reported good to excellent relief of dysphagia and no symptom of gastroesophageal reflux after surgery. Eight patients were subsequently studied with a 24-hour esophageal pH monitoring and no evidence of pathologic reflux found. Conclusions Transthoracic Heller myotomy with a small incision is effective and safe method for treatment of achalasia with minimal invasion, quick recovery, less postoperative complication and shorter hospital stay. Proper extent of the myotomy may decrease the risk of subsequent gastroesophageal reflux in the postoperative period.
Mini-invasive video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) has been employed in diagnosis and treatment of esophageal diseases for about 10 years. The potential advantages of VATS over thoracotomy are reduction of chest pain just after the operation and in the long run, lower incidence of postoperative respiratory complications, and reduction of aesthetic sequelae. Thoracoscopic staging of esophageal cancer is to evaluate the invasion and metastasis of cancer, which is helpful for better selection of patients for appropriate treatment .Operation of esophageal cancer with VATS is prescribed mainly in the early stage of carcinoma, but it’s application is restricted due to the multiple sites of operation and complexity of procedures. VATS for benign esophageal diseases such as esophageal leiomyoma and achalasia is becoming the preferable choice of operation in qualified medical centers.
Objective Through the methods of evidence-based medicine, to make an individualized treatment plan for a patient with achalasia. Methods Based on an adequate assessment of the patient’s condition, clinical issues aimed at this case were put forward. And the best clinical evidence related to achalasia treatment was evaluated after being retrieved from The Cochrane library (1990 to 2010) and PubMed (1980 to 2010). Results 33 studies were retrieved including 29 RCTs and 4 systematic reviews. The efficacy and safety of drug therapy, endoscopic injection of botulinum, endoscopic balloon dilatation and surgical therapy were evaluated. Cosidering symptoms,age and comorbidities, we recommended endoscopic balloon dilatation or laparoscopic Heller postoperative plus Dor fundoplication surgery for treatment. The patient’s choice is endoscopic balloon dilatation. Symptoms of patient were relieved after treatment. Conclusion Making a rational therapeutic plan for achalasia patients by means of evidence-based treatment not only can improve therapeutic effect but also be beneficial for both doctors and patients to share uncertain risks.
Objective To determine the effectiveness and safety of pneumatic balloon dilatation in patients with achalasia. Methods We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL, issue 1, 2007), MEDLINE or PUBMED (1978-2007), Embase (1978-2007), OVID Database (1978-2007), Chinese Biological Medicine Database (CBMDisc, 1978-2007), CNKI (1979-2007), Chinese VIP Database (1989-2007) and Wanfang Database (1978-2007). We also checked the reference lists of retrieved articles and relevant proceedings. We used the methods recommended by The Cochrane Collaboration to conduct this systematic review. Results Twenty four trials involving 1045 patients were included. Meta-analyses showed that the short-term total effective rate was much higher with pneumatic dilatation than intrasphincteric botulinum toxin injection (P=0.0007). The long-term total effective rate was higher with pneumatic dilatation compared to intrasphincteric botulinum toxin injection (P=0.005). Intrasphincteric botulinum toxin injection was superior to pneumatic dilatation in terms of clinical relapse rate (Plt;0.0001). Our analyses of complications and adverse effects found that pneumatic dilatation was superior to intrasphincteric botulinum toxin injection (P=0.0008), and endoscopic sphincterotomy was superior to balloon dilatation (P=0.0006). Conclusions The limited current evidence shows that: pneumatic dilatation is safe and effective for the short- or long-term treatment of achalasia.
Achalasia is a rare motor disorder of the esophagus and its etiology and pathogenesis remain unclear. Its clinical presentation typically includes various degrees of dysphagia, regurgitation, aspiration, chest pain and weight loss. The main therapy purpose for achalasia is to reduce lower esophageal sphincter pressure (LESP) so as to alleviate clinical symptoms. There are a variety of treatment methods for achalasia, such as pharmacotherapy, intrasphincteric botulinum toxin injection, endoscopic pneumatic dilatation and surgical intervention. At present, most scholars prefer laparoscopic or thorascopic surgery to achieve satisfactory long-term results including alleviated symptoms and prevention of acid reflux. However, great controversy still exists among scholars regarding the choice of conservative therapy or surgery, transthoracic or transabdominal surgery, optimal distal extent of myotomy, the need and choice of additional antireflux procedures. In this review, we focus on current therapy and progress of achalasia.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the efficacy and safety of laparoscopic Heller's myotomy (LHM) versus pneumatic dilatation (PD) for achalasia. MethodsDatabases including PubMed, EMbase, The Cochrane Library (Issue 8, 2015), Web of Knowledge, CNKI, CBM, WanFang Data and VIP were searched from inception to August 26th 2015, to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of LHM versus PD for achalasia. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of included studies. Then, meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 software. ResultsA total of 5 RCTs involving 446 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that, compared with PD, LHM could significantly improve the effective rates after 3-month and 1-year follow-up (OR=2.66, 95%CI 1.08 to 6.60, P=0.03; OR=2.24, 95%CI 1.29 to 3.87, P=0.004). There were no statistical differences between the two groups in effective rate after more than 2-year follow-up (OR=1.749, 95%CI 0.99 to 3.23, P=0.05) and incidence of complications (OR=0.27, 95%CI 0.06 to 1.13, P=0.07). ConclusionCurrent evidence shows that, compared with PD, LHM could improve the short-term effective rate but could not improve the long-term (2-3 years) effective rate and reduce the incidence of complications. Due to limited quality and quantity of the included studies, more high quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusion.
Objective Through a retrospective study on esophageal function changes and symptom relief after video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery treatment for achalasia of cardia (AC) to assess the clinical value of this operation. Methods We reviewed the data of 34 AC patients who received modified Heller operation by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery in the Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou Medical University from March 2012 to September 2014. There were 11 males and 23 females with a median age of 35 (11–67) years. These patients were divided into four groups according to the time of treatment and follow-up: preoperative group, postoperative one-month group, postoperative three-month group and postoperative six-month group. Changes of symptoms, radiography and esophageal dynamics before and after therapy were collected. These different groups were analyzed based on statistical methods. Results There was no statistical difference in ages and genders among groups (P>0.05). The surgery was successful and no complication or death occurred. Symptoms of patients showed different degrees of relief and the postoperative grade of clinical symptoms decreased (P<0.05). After surgery, lower esophageal sphincter pressure (LESP), lower esophageal sphincter resting pressure (LESRP) and esophageal body pressure (EBP) decreased significantly, while lower esophageal sphincter relax rate (LESRR) increased (P<0.05). While there was no significant difference in length of lower esophageal sphincter (LESL,P>0.05). Angiography of upper digestive tract revealed that compared to the preoperative group, the maximum width in postoperative three-month group decreased significantly (P<0.05). During the follow-up, 3 patients suffered gastroesophageal reflux, 2 patients esophageal perforation and 1 patient empyema due to esophago-pleural fistula. No massive hemorrhage of upper digestive tract and hiatal hernia occured. Conclusion Sugery can significantly ameliorate the clinical symptoms of the patients with AC, and improve esophageal dynamics. And it is simple and easy to perform with less complications and better long-term outcomes. Improved Heller operation by video-assisted thoracoscopy is a less invasive procedure when compared with the traditional thoracotomy. Moreover, esophageal manometry can objectively assist in the diagnosis and degree of the disease and effect of therapy.
Objective To investigate short-term outcomes of robot-assisted Heller-Dor myotomy (RAHM-Dor) for achalasia of cardia and our learning curve experience. Methods The clinical data and recent follow-up results of 42 patients who received RAHM-Dor from November 2015 to January 2020 in the Department of Thoracic Surgery of the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University were retrospectively analyzed, including 20 males and 22 females with a mean age of 40.8±18.4 years. ResultsDysphagia was the most common symptom, followed by heartburn and regurgitation. The mean operation time was 122.8±23.9 min. The mean blood loss was 47.5±32.7 mL. Two patients suffered mucosal injury, and successfully repaired by suturing during surgery. There was no esophageal fistula, conversion to an open operation or perioperative death in this series. The median length of hospital stay was 8 (6, 9) d. In all patients, the Stooler and Eckardt scores of postoperative 1, 6 and 12 months decreased compared to those of pre-operation (P<0.001). Conclusion RAHM-Dor is a safe and feasible avenue for the treatment of achalasia of cardia, and can achieve a satisfying short-term results. The learning curve shows a transition to the standard stage from the learning stage after 16-18 operations.