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Published on: September 11, 2021
Unique case of esophageal rupture after a fall from height
Mark van Heijl1, Teun P Saltzherr, Mark I van Berge Henegouwen
1Department of Surgery, Academic Medical Centre, Amsterdam, Netherlands. m.vanheijl@amc.uva.nl
Background:
Traumatic ruptures of the esophagus are relatively rare. This condition is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Most traumatic ruptures occur after motor vehicle accidents.
Case Presentation:
We describe a unique case of a 23 year old woman that presented at our trauma resuscitation room after a fall from 8 meters. During physical examination there were no clinical signs of life-threatening injuries. She did however have a massive amount of subcutaneous emphysema of the chest and neck and pneumomediastinum. Flexible laryngoscopy revealed a lesion in the upper esophagus just below the level of the upper esophageal sphincter. Despite preventive administration of intravenous antibiotics and nutrition via a nasogastric tube, the patient developed a cervical abscess, which drained spontaneously. Normal diet was gradually resumed after 2.5 weeks and the patient was discharged in a reasonable condition 3 weeks after the accident.
Conclusions:
This case report presents a high cervical esophageal rupture without associated local injuries after a fall from height.
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