Isolated gastric outlet obstruction due to corrosive ingestion

To analyze the diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of isolated gastric outlet obstruction secondary to corrosive ingestion.

Retrospective chart review of eight patients who developed gastric stricture following corrosive ingestion and were treated in the Digestive and General Surgery Service of Yopougon Teaching Hospital in Abidjan from 1991 to 2009.

Six men and two women (mean age of 34.3 [range 21 to 48 years]) had isolated gastric outlet obstruction following accidental (n=2) or suicidal (n=6) acid ingestion. Two patients sought hospital medical attention two days after ingestion, whereas six patients came to hospital with a mean delay of 60.8 days (range 12 and 96 days). Patients sought medical attention for poor general status (n=6), postprandial vomiting (n=4), early satiety (n=2) and retrosternal pain (n=2). Two patients, who presented early to hospital, underwent upper gastrointestinal tract endoscopy the day after admission and then received a feeding jejunostomy whereas the esogastroduodenal barium swallow and feeding jejunostomy were performed after a mean delay of 2 days (range 1 and 3 days) and 3 days (range 1 and 5 days), respectively. The findings at upper endoscopy and barium swallow were: microgastria (n=2), midgastric stricture (n=1), antropyloric stricture (n=4) and gastric body stricture (n=1). One patient died preoperatively as the result of severe nutritional depletion. A follow-up endoscopy and barium swallow were performed respectively 21 and 35 days later. Definitive surgery was performed after a mean delay of 85 days (range 74 to 123 days) in the remaining seven patients. Gastric lesions were managed by total gastrectomy with Roux-en-Y esophagojejunostomy (n=2), partial gastrectomy with gastrojejunostomy (n=2) or simple gastrojejunostomy (n=3). During the mean follow-up period of 4 years (range 1 to 7 years), all patients were free of symptoms.

Isolated corrosive gastric stricture is relatively rare. Surgery tailored according to the extent of gastric stricture provides excellent results.