Summary
Background
Esophageal diverticula (ED) mainly consist of epiphrenic (distal) and mid-esophageal diverticula. Most studies describing the presentation of these patients are older and reported a mean age of about 60. We sought to evaluate how two trends—the frequent use of endoscopy and increasing life expectancy—impact the presentation and evaluation of ED patients.
Methods
Charts of ED patients at our facility between 2007 and 2020 were retrospectively reviewed.
Results
A total of 77 ED patients were identified (mean age 76.4 years; 58% female). 59 (77%) were initially diagnosed endoscopically, with an endoscopic prevalence of 0.295%. 44 (57%) were symptomatic at diagnosis, with the most common symptoms being dysphagia (84%) and vomiting/regurgitation (55%). Subjects diagnosed endoscopically were less likely to be symptomatic than those diagnosed radiographically (49% vs. 83%, p = 0.01). Of the 33 asymptomatic subjects, only 2 (6%) developed symptoms during a mean follow-up of 61 months. Six patients (8%) underwent esophageal manometry (all had a motility disorder); five (6%) underwent surgery. Age was not a predictor of the method of diagnosis or presence of symptoms. However, subjects ≥ 80 years old (34, 44%) were less likely to undergo manometry (0% vs. 16%, p = 0.031), with a trend towards being less likely to undergo surgery (0% vs. 14%, p = 0.063).
Conclusion
Nowadays, the majority of ED are endoscopically diagnosed and these are less likely to be symptomatic than radiographically diagnosed ED. ED patients are older than previously reported and older patients are less likely to undergo esophageal manometry or surgery. Gastroenterologists and surgeons should be aware of these emerging trends.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Thomas ML, Anthony AA, Fosh BG, et al. Oesophageal diverticula. Br J Surg. 2001;88(5):629–42.
Sonbare DJ. Pulsion diverticulum of the oesophagus: more than just an out pouch. Indian J Surg. 2015;77(1):44–8.
Baker ME, Zuccaro G Jr, Achkar E, et al. Esophageal diverticula: patient assessment. Semin Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 1999;11(4):326–36.
Nehra D, Lord RV, DeMeester TR, et al. Physiologic basis for the treatment of epiphrenic diverticulum. Ann Surg. 2002;235(3):346–54.
do Nascimento FA, Lemme EM, Costa MM. Esophageal diverticula: pathogenesis, clinical aspects, and natural history. Dysphagia. 2006;21(3):198–205.
Charlson ME, Pompei P, Ales KL, al at. A new method of classifying prognostic comorbidity in longitudinal studies: development and validation. J Chronic Dis. 1987;40(5):373–83.
Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI).. https://www.mdcalc.com/charlson-comorbidity-index-cci. Accessed 20 Apr 2021.
Harrington SW. The surgical treatment of pulsion diverticula of the thoracic esophagus. Ann Surg. 1949;129(5):606–18.
Habein HC, Moersch HJ, Kirklin JW. Diverticula of the lower part of the esophagus; a clinical study of one hundred forty-nine nonsurgical cases. AMA Arch Intern Med. 1956;97(6):768–77.
Habein HC, Kirklin JW, Clagett OT, et al. Surgical treatment of lower esophageal pulsion diverticula. AMA Arch Surg. 1956;72(6):1018–24.
Effler DB, Barr D, Groves LK. Epiphrenic diverticulum of the esophagus: surgical treatment. Arch Surg. 1959;79:459–67.
Bruggeman LL, Seaman WB. Epiphrenic diverticula. An analysis of 80 cases. Am J Roentgenol Radium Ther Nucl Med. 1973;119(2):266–76.
Kaye MD. Oesophageal motor dysfunction in patients with diverticula of the mid-thoracic oesophagus. Thorax. 1974;29(6):666–72.
Giuli R, Estenne B, Richard CA, et al. Les diverticules de l’oesophage. A propos de 221 cas [Esophageal diverticula. Apropos of 221 cases]. Ann Chir. 1974;28(6):435–43. French.
Debas HT, Payne WS, Cameron AJ, et al. Physiopathology of lower esophageal diverticulum and its implications for treatment. Surg Gynecol Obstet. 1980;151(5):593–600.
Rivkin L, Bremner CG, Bremner CH. Pathophysiology of mid-oesophageal and epiphrenic diverticula of the oesophagus. S Afr Med J. 1984;66(4):127–9.
Evander A, Little AG, Ferguson MK, et al. Diverticula of the mid- and lower esophagus: pathogenesis and surgical management. World J Surg. 1986;10(5):820–8.
Fékéte F, Vonns C. Surgical management of esophageal thoracic diverticula. Hepatogastroenterology. 1992;39(2):97–9.
Altorki NK, Sunagawa M, Skinner DB. Thoracic esophageal diverticula. Why is operation necessary? J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 1993;105(2):260–4.
Benacci JC, Deschamps C, Trastek VF, et al. Epiphrenic diverticulum: results of surgical treatment. Ann Thorac Surg. 1993;55(5):1109–13. discussion 1114.
Hudspeth DA, Thorne MT, Conroy R, et al. Management of epiphrenic esophageal diverticula. A fifteen-year experience. Am Surg. 1993;59(1):40–2.
Castrucci G, Porziella V, Granone PL, et al. Tailored surgery for esophageal body diverticula. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 1998;14(4):380–7.
Jordan PH, Kinner BM. New look at epiphrenic diverticula. World J Surg. 1999;23(2):147–52.
Fasano NC, Levine MS, Rubesin SE, et al. Epiphrenic diverticulum: clinical and radiographic findings in 27 patients. Dysphagia. 2003;18(1):9–15.
Klaus A, Hinder RA, Swain J, et al. Management of epiphrenic diverticula. J Gastrointest Surg. 2003;7(7):906–11.
Tedesco P, Fisichella PM, Way LW, et al. Cause and treatment of epiphrenic diverticula. Am J Surg. 2005;190(6):891–4.
Zaninotto G, Portale G, Costantini M, et al. Long-term outcome of operated and unoperated epiphrenic diverticula. J Gastrointest Surg. 2008;12(9):1485–90.
McDonald JD, Jacobs J, Saad A, et al. Heller myotomy for epiphrenic diverticula compared to nondiverticula esophageal motility disorders, a single institution experience and appraisal of patient characteristics, high-resolution manometry and outcomes. Dig Surg. 2020;37(1):72–80.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
All authors contributed to this study. DLC: study concept and design, data acquisition and interpretation, writing the manuscript, critical review. AK: data acquisition and interpretation. AB: data acquisition and interpretation. HS: study concept and design, critical review.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
D.L. Cohen, A. Krutouz, A. Bermont, and H. Shirin declare that they have no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Cohen, D.L., Krutouz, A., Bermont, A. et al. Trends in the presentation of patients with esophageal diverticula in the era of endoscopy. Eur Surg 53, 215–221 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10353-021-00736-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10353-021-00736-6