Cardiac complications in the first week post transhiatal esophagectomy for esophageal cancer

Abstract EN

Objective: To determine cardiac complications and associated risk factors in the first week post transhiatal esophagectomy for esophageal cancer patients without detectable cardiac diseases.

Methods: This descriptive study was conducted during the period from January 2000 through October 2007.

Sixty-eight patients were included in this study.

Patients with pre existing cardiac diseases were excluded.

All the patients underwent transhiatal esophagectomy for a malignant lesion.

All the cardiac complications were documented and analysed in the first week post operatively.

Results: There were 50 males (73.5%) and 18 females (26.5%), age ranged from 35 to 83 years (mean 62.7 ± 10.3).

Post operative cardiac complications occurred in 25 patients (36.8%) during the first post operative week.

Atrial fibrillation was the most commonly reported cardiac complication which occurred in 14 patients (20.6%), followed by supra ventricular tachycardia in six patients (8.8%), two patients developed atrial flutter (2.9%), fatal myocardial infarction in two patients (2.9%) and nonfatal myocardial infarction in one (1.5%).

Male gender, older age, longer procedure and first 48 hours post transhiatal esophagectomy were risk factors.

Conclusion: Cardiac complications, mainly arrhythmias, are common after transhiatal esophagectomy.

Preoperative evaluation, intraoperative and postoperative cardiac monitoring are mandatory in all patients even in those who have no cardiac illnesses.