Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019:61:188-190.
doi: 10.1016/j.ijscr.2019.07.041. Epub 2019 Jul 22.

Acute esophageal necrosis: Case report of an unknown entity

A Maubert  1 , S Frey  2 , A Rahili  2 , J Filippi  3 , E Benizri  2
Affiliations

Acute esophageal necrosis: Case report of an unknown entity

A Maubert et al. Int J Surg Case Rep. 2019.

Abstract

Introduction: Acute Esophageal Necrosis Syndrome (AENS) is a rare and unknown clinical entity, defined as a diffuse circumferential black-appearing friable esophageal mucosa going from the distal esophageal mucosa to the gastroesophageal (GE) junction. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) remains the gold standard in making diagnosis.

Presentation of case: We report here the case of a 45-year-old man with necrosis of the esophagus treated conservatively. Regression of the lesion but persistence of ulcerations were seen on the endoscopic follow-up. Distal esophageal stenosis was then diagnosed and treated by endoscopic dilation.

Discussion: Diagnosis of AENS must be considered when an old patient, with multiple comorbidities, presents an upper digestive hemorrhage. Upper endoscopy is mandatory. Treatment is in most of the cases conservative. Esophageal stenosis is a frequent complication.

Conclusion: Although AENS is a rare clinical entity, it should not be dismissed by doctors, avoiding useless surgical management. This pathology remains nevertheless associated with a considerable mortality rate.

Keywords: Acute esophageal necrosis; Black esophagus; Endoscopy; Esophagus.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

None.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Endoscopic view day 0 with circumferential necrosis of esophagus.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
CT-scan with stagnant fluid in esophagus (white arrow) and thickening of the duodenal walls (yellow arrow).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Brennan J.L. Case of extensive necrosis of the oesophageal mucosa following hypothermia. J. Clin. Pathol. 1967;20:581–584. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Goldenberg S.P., Wain S.L., Marignani P. Acute necrotizing esophagitis. Gastroenterology. 1990;98(February (2)):493–496. - PubMed
    1. Lacy B.E., Toor A., Bensen S.P., Rothstein R.I., Maheshwari Y. Acute esophageal necrosis: report of two cases and a review of the literature. Gastrointest. Endosc. 1999;49(April (4 Pt. 1)):527–532. - PubMed
    1. Ben Soussan E., Savoye G., Hochain P., Hervé S., Antonietti M., Lemoine F., Ducrotté P. Acute esophageal necrosis: a 1-year prospective study. Gastrointest. Endosc. 2002;56(August (2)):213–217. - PubMed
    1. Moretó M., Ojembarrena E., Zaballa M., Tánago J.G., Ibánez S. Idiopathic acute esophageal necrosis: not necessarily a terminal event. Endoscopy. 1993;25(October (8)):534–538. - PubMed