Thoracoscopic approach for congenital bronchoesophageal fistula in an adult

Abstract

We present a case of a congenital bronchoesophageal fistula in an adult male who underwent video-assisted thoracic surgery for a resection of the fistula. The patient had not suffered from any serious respiratory infection since the adolescence. However, at 49 years old, the patient experienced persistent cough and back pain. An abnormal shadow in the right lower lobe was observed on a chest X-ray. Chest computed tomography scanning indicated bronchiectasia in the lower superior segment and an abnormal air duct in the posterior mediastinum. Esophagography revealed a 4-cm-long and 1-cm-diameter fistula between the midesophagus and the right lower lobe. Esophagoscopy and bronchoscopy revealed the orifice of the fistula. Three-dimensional computed tomography scanning demonstrated that there was no abnormal artery supplying blood to the affected lung. He underwent video-assisted thoracic surgery, and was uneventfully discharged. Thoracoscopy offered excellent anatomical visualization of the fistula and safe surgical resection.