Management of esophageal caustic injury.

Ingestion of caustic substances and its long-term effect on the gastrointestinal system maintain its place as an important public health issue in spite of the multiple efforts to educate the public and contain its growing number. This is due to the ready availability of caustic agents and the loose regulatory control on its production. Substances with extremes of pH are very corrosive and can create severe injury in the upper gastrointestinal tract. The severity of injury depends on several aspects: Concentration of the substance, amount ingested, length of time of tissue contact, and pH of the agent. Solid materials easily adhere to the mouth and pharynx, causing greatest damage to these regions while liquids pass through the mouth and pharynx more quickly consequently producing its maximum damage in the esophagus and stomach. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy is therefore a highly recommended diagnostic tool in the evaluation of caustic injury. It is considered the cornerstone not only in the diagnosis but also in the prognostication and guide to management of caustic ingestions. The degree of esophageal injury at endoscopy is a predictor of systemic complication and death with a 9-fold increase in morbidity and mortality for every increased injury grade. Because of this high rate of complication, prompt evaluation cannot be overemphasized in order to halt development and prevent progression of complications.

Hepatocolic fistula: a rare presentation of pyogenic liver abscess.

A 58-year-old man was admitted due to a 4-month history of colicky right upper quadrant pain, intermittent fever, anorexia and weight loss. A contrast-enhanced CT scan of the abdomen showed an encapsulated, peripherally enhancing focus occupying the right liver lobe exhibiting capsular rupture and extension to the walls of the hepatic flexure. He immediately underwent emergency ultrasound-guided percutaneous catheter drainage and cultures of the purulent fluid later revealed Escherichia coli A colonoscopy was then performed which showed a pinpoint opening with draining pus at the hepatic flexure. A fistulogram confirmed a fistulous tract arising from the inferior aspect of the abscess cavity, draining into the posterosuperior aspect of the hepatic flexure. He was started on intravenous antibiotics and after 1 week of decreasing output, a repeat ultrasound showed very minimal residual fluid. The percutaneous catheter drain was then removed after 2 weeks and the patient was discharged improved.

Duodenocolic fistula diagnosed by endoscopy: a rare complication of colon cancer.

Duodenocolic fistula (DCF) is a rare complication of colon cancer with only 70 cases reported since its first description in 1862. Owing to its rarity, current knowledge on DCF still relies on single case reports. We present 2 cases of DCF from a hepatic flexure adenocarcinoma demonstrated initially by endoscopy. 2 adult male patients were admitted due to a 2-3-month history of right-upper quadrant pain, vomiting, diarrhoea and a palpable right upper quadrant mass. In both cases, a circumferential, friable mass was noted on upper endoscopy at the second portion of the duodenum, leading to the ascending colon. A similar-looking lesion was also noted on colonoscopy. Biopsies in both cases confirmed colonic adenocarcinoma. Owing to the advanced nature of the disease, en bloc resection was not achieved. Instead, tube jejunostomy and loop ileostomy were created. Both patients were discharged tolerating feeding with improvement in symptoms.