Transient post-vagotomy dysphagia: A distinct clinical and roentgenographic entity

Dysphagia is a relatively infrequent complication of vagotomy in the postoperative period. The most common form is a transient post-vagotomy dysphagia which requires not treatment other than the temporary exclusion of solid food. Accurate diagnosis is possible on the basis of clinical history and typical roentgenographic findings. The onset of dysphagia characteristically occurs with the first ingestion of solid foods on the seventh to fourteenth postoperative days. A barium swallow examination reveals persistent tapered narrowing of the therminal three to four centrimeters of the esophagus. Most cases are relieved in two to six weeks without clinical or roentgenographic residua. Five cases of transient postvagotomy dysphagia are presented.