What happens if your esophagus tears?
The esophagus is the tube that connects the mouth with the stomach. When a tear occurs in this tube, the condition is known as esophageal rupture. A rupture allows food or fluids to leak into the chest and cause severe lung problems.
How do you heal a torn esophagus?
Treatment
- Drainage of the spilled fluid and food with chest tubes.
- Endoscopy and stent placement (a hollow tube is placed in the esophagus to occlude the hole)
- Esophagectomy in extreme cases when the esophagus cannot be repaired.
- Minimally invasive repair of the perforation site.
- Open repair of the perforation.
Can a damaged esophagus be repaired?
The esophagus is a complex organ comprising nonredundant tissue that does not have the ability to regenerate. Hence, surgical repair and/or replacement of the esophagus are the only feasible treatment options upon extensive structural damage.
How serious is an esophageal tear?
Esophageal tear is defined as a breach of the esophageal wall resulting from a mucosal tear, perforation, or rupture. Tears of the esophagus are life-threatening conditions that require prompt diagnosis and emergency treatment.
How do I know if I have an esophageal tear?
Symptoms of rupture of the esophagus include chest pain, abdominal pain, vomiting, vomiting blood, low blood pressure, and fever.
How common is an esophageal tear?
Esophageal perforation is a rare and potentially life-threatening condition. Early clinical suspicion and imaging is important for case management to achieve a good outcome. However, recent studies continue to report high morbidity and mortality greater than 20% from esophageal perforation.
How do you repair a torn esophagus?
Treatment usually involves surgery to repair the tear and remove esophageal contents from the chest cavity, combined with antibiotics to prevent or treat a bacterial infection. If the esophagus has been severely damaged, surgical removal of part or all of the esophagus may be necessary.
Can you tear your esophagus?
In cases of severe esophageal damage, the affected portion of the esophagus may be removed surgically. Small tears can often be treated medically. In such cases, the patient will not be permitted to eat and oral suction may be used to keep the esophagus empty.
How does alcohol damage the esophagus?
For exam- ple, alcohol distinctly impairs esophageal motility, and even a single drinking episode (i.e., acute alcohol consump- tion) significantly weakens the lower esophageal sphincter. As a result, gastroesophageal reflux may occur, and the esophagus’ ability to clear the refluxed gastric acid may be reduced.
What are the symptoms of a tear in the esophagus?
The first symptom experienced by the patient is pain.