Complications of secondary tracheoesophageal puncture: the Cleveland Clinic Foundation experience

One hundred forty-six secondary tracheoesophageal puncture (TEP) procedures were performed on 132 patients at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in the past 10 years. The complications of these procedures are reviewed, along with assessment of potential risk factors such as irradiation, esophageal/hypopharyngeal stricture, alcoholism, diabetes, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Among the subgroups studied, only stricture dilation was associated with an increased incidence of postsurgical complications. The majority of these, however, were immediate, and were probably related to the esophagoscopy or dilation itself. The incidence of TEP-related complications in all groups of patients may be higher than previously suspected.