Antesternal Colonic Interposition for Corrosive Esophageal Stricture

Restoration of swallowing in a patient with dysphagia due to nondilatable corrosive stricture of esophagus remains a surgical challenge. Organs available for replacement are stomach, jejunum, or colon. Jejunum is useful to replace a small segment, whereas stomach and colon are required for a long-segment replacement. In cases where the stomach is also injured, colon remains the only option. The route of colonic interposition has also been a subject of debate over the years. Antesternal, retrosternal, or esophageal bed passage are the routes described. In the present series, the data of antesternal colonic interposition (ACI) performed for nondilatable benign esophageal strictures in 32 patients (1988–2011) have been retrospectively analyzed. The results indicate that ACI for corrosive strictures is a quick and simple procedure. Thoracotomy is avoided and anastomosis is easily performed in the neck, and mortality rate due to anastomotic failure or graft failure is diminished. This retrospective analysis discusses the ease, effectiveness, quality of life, morbidity, and mortality of ACI and compares the pros and cons of ACI with other procedures described in the literature.