Citation

Farkas ZC, Pal S, Jolly GP, Lim MMD, Malik A, Malekan R. Ann. Thorac. Surg. 2019; 107(3): e207-e208.

Affiliation

Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, New York Medical College at Westchester Medical Center. Electronic address: ramin.malekan@wmchealth.org.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Publisher Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.athoracsur.2018.06.087

PMID

30179624

Abstract

Esophago-pericardial fistulas are rare. Most reported cases are related to malignancy or prior surgical intervention. We report a case of an esophago-pericardial fistula presenting as pneumopericardium and purulent pericarditis in a patient with a history of caustic ingestion and an esophageal stent. Esophago-pericardial fistulas are uncommon and typically related to upper gastrointestinal malignancy or prior surgery. They are also a known complication of esophageal stents that remain in place for a prolonged duration. Symptoms can present weeks to months after the initial insult and range from slight dysphagia to cardiac tamponade and sepsis. Their rarity makes them a diagnostic challenge to clinicians; recognizing the long term complications of esophageal injury, its varying presentations, and the need to use caution when placing an esophageal stent, is key.

Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Language: en

Keywords

Esophago-pericardial fistula; pneumopericardium; purulent pericarditis