True Short Esophagus in Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

True Short Esophagus in Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease or Hiatus Hernia

True short esophagus is controversial in surgery for gastroesophageal reflux disease and hiatus hernia. Recently, it was published that extensive esophageal mobilization achieved an esophageal length adequate to perform around the esophagus fundoplication in all cases with satisfactory long-term results.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease
• Intervention / Treatment: Procedure: Surgery

Detailed Description

In the 1960s, surgery for hiatus hernia and gastroesophageal reflux disease were introduced based on anatomical principles. The technical foundations of the new surgery were essentially dictated by experience. The following findings were reported: the stomach must be wrapped around an adequate segment of intra-abdominal esophagus, the antireflux barrier is efficient if the fundoplication acts under abdominal pressure and tension over sutures must be minimal to avoid disruption. Since the early use of open antireflux surgery, controversy has arisen between surgeons who treat patients using dedicated techniques in cases diagnosed with a shortened esophagus and surgeons who deny the existence of short esophagus. The clinical results achieved by both parties were not different, independently of the adoption of an open or minimally invasive technique. In 2008, a multicenter study found that true short esophagus was present in almost 20% of patients who were routinely submitted to surgery for gastroesophageal reflux disease and/or not axial hiatus hernias; the study was based on intraoperative measurements obtained in centimeters of the distance between the gastric folds considered the gastroesophageal junction and the apex of the diaphragm after extensive mobilization of the intra thoracic esophagus. Recently, in a study performed to assess symptomatic recurrence in patients who underwent laparoscopic repair of large hernias, the authors did not perform any esophageal lengthening procedures because an adequate segment of abdominal esophagus was always achieved after extended esophageal mobilization; they concluded that the use of proton pump inhibitors for the medical management of gastroesophageal reflux disease may have reduced the formation of peptic stricture, which is associated with short esophagus, and that esophageal lengthening procedures should probably no longer be applied.

In this study, the position of the gastroesophageal junction with respect for the diaphragmatic hiatus was assessed subjectively. Once more, crucial questions related to the debate on short esophagus were raised: is it possible that a) without an objective assessment of the position of the gastroesophageal junction , the gastric fundus may be inadvertently wrapped around the hypo cardia stomach, which acquires a tubular shape as a consequence of progressive esophageal shortening; and b) can the unconventional stomach around stomach fundoplication approach achieve good clinical results? To answer these questions, the investigators considered cases operated upon to gastroesophageal reflux disease and hiatus hernia since 2004, when was routinely adopted the use of intraoperative endoscopic assessment of the gastroesophageal junction position with respect for the diaphragmatic hiatus, were considered. In this series, participants were grouped according to the radiological classification of hiatus hernia, the length of the intra-abdominal esophagus, the surgical techniques adopted.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 311

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 16 years to 83 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients affected by gastroesophageal reflux disease or hiatus hernia submitted to primary minimally invasive surgery.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients submitted to primary minimally invasive surgery for gastroesophageal reflux diseases or hiatus hernia.
• Age > 18 years.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients already submitted to minimally invasive surgery for gastroesophageal reflux diseases or hiatus hernia for recurrence of the disease.
• Patients submitted to open surgery for gastroesophageal reflux diseases or hiatus hernia.
• Patients affected by other esophageal diseases.
• Age < 18 years.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Observational Models: Cohort
• Time Perspectives: Prospective

Number of groups / cohorts

1

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Gastroesophageal reflux disease; Patients submitted to primary minimally invasive surgery for gastroesophageal reflux disease or hiatus hernia	Procedure: Surgery; Laparoscopic floppy Nissen, laparoscopic-left thoracoscopic Collis-Nissen, laparoscopic gastric fundus wrapped around the stomach

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Frequency of true short esophagus	Intraoperative abdominal esophageal length < 1.5 cm	9 years
Long term results after surgery	Excellent = no reflux symptoms or dysphagia or esophagitis; good = slight reflux symptoms or dysphagia on a monthly basis and no esophagitis; fair = moderate reflux symptoms or dysphagia on a weekly basis; grade A esophagitis according to Los Angeles classification; poor = severe reflux symptoms or dysphagia on a daily basis and esophagitis B,C,D according to Los Angeles classification.	9 years

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Bologna
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Marialuisa Lugaresi, MD, PhD, Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences University of Bologna Italy

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 1, 2004
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 31, 2017
• Study Completion (Actual): December 31, 2018

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: January 23, 2019
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 19, 2019
• First Posted (Actual): February 20, 2019

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): February 20, 2019
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 19, 2019
• Last Verified: February 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: gastroesophageal reflux disease; hiatus hernia
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Digestive System Diseases; Gastrointestinal Diseases; Stomach Diseases; Gastroenteritis; Intestinal Diseases; Esophageal Motility Disorders; Deglutition Disorders; Esophageal Diseases; Esophagitis; Peptic Ulcer; Duodenal Diseases; Gastroesophageal Reflux; Esophagitis, Peptic
• Other Study ID Numbers: True Short Esophagus-2019

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: No

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No