Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0019270 (hernia)
 15,856 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Food obstruction at the cricopharyngeal level is a common symptom of gastroesophageal reflux. In selected patients, cricopharyngeal myotomy is effective in relief of symptoms. We have used myotomy in patients whose only symptom was dysphagia, in patients too debilitated for major surgery, and in patients with persistent pharyngoesophageal dysphagia following hiatal hernia repair. All were studied by barium esophagogram, endoscopy, and manometry. Radiologic aspiration of barium was apparent in five of 19 patients. High-speed manometric tracings showed intermittent cricopharyngeal incoordination in the six consecutive patients most recently studied. This finding of incoordination has been shown to be present in 38 patients with reflux and in all with major cricopharyngeal symptoms. Myotomy was effective in relieving symptoms in patients in whom this was the only reflux symptom and in the five patients too debilitated for major surgery. Good symptomatic improvement was obtained in nine of the 12 with persistent dysphagia following hernia repair, but in three relief was partial, with persistent symptoms being secondary to distal esophageal obstruction. Investigation is necessary to exclude other causes of dysphagia. However, withcareful selection, myotomy has proved to be an effective method of treatment.
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PMID:Cricopharyngeal myotomy as a method of treating cricopharyngeal dysphagia secondary to gastroesophageal reflux. 91 11

Zenker's diverticulum is the single most common diverticular event arising in the esophagus. Its physiopathology is universally recognized. Lack of coordination between the propulsive pharyngeal contractions and the release of the upper esophageal sphincter creates abnormally high pressure in the pharyngeal chamber, resulting in the collapse of the posterior wall of the hypopharynx, i.e., the Laimer-Killian triangle (or Killian's dehiscence). The mucosal hernia that develops constitutes the diverticulum, which grows in volume and above all in length and is compressed between two rigid structures, namely, the spine posteriorly and the trachea anteriorly. Swallowing progressively fills the diverticulum, which in turn leads to compression of the esophagus and hence to the characteristic symptom of "delayed dysphagia" or "dysphagia of the 3rd bite". These physiopathological considerations underpin the rationale for surgical treatment, namely upper esophageal sphincter myotomy and diverticulectomy, which is the standard approach used in the 44 cases presented here. A diverticulopexy was performed only once due to the patient's advanced age. Myotomy alone was performed in only one case, given the small size of the diverticulum. In two patients the standard procedure was carried out following emergency therapy for iatrogenic perforation of the diverticulum. The patient with cancer underwent chemo-radiotherapy after futile surgical attempts. Complications included transitory salivary leakage (1 case), and a transitory laryngeal nerve deficit (1 case). Gastroesophageal reflux disease was present in two-thirds of the patients. A Nissen-Rossetti fundoplication was performed one year after treatment of the diverticulum in 5 patients. The following important aspects emerged: i) the incidence of neoplasia on the diverticulum; ii) the association and possible pathogenetic relationship with gastro-esophageal reflux disease iii) the validity of myotomy plus diverticulectomy as a treatment option in view of the negligible complications and the absence of relapse and/or persistence of dysphagia.
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PMID:[Our experience with pharyngo-esophageal Zenker's diverticulum]. 1472 16