Esophageal strictures: treatment with a new design of modified Gianturco stent. Work in progress.

To overcome the drawbacks of the modified Gianturco stent tube with barbs, a new barbless stent tube was constructed. Twenty-two barbless stent tubes 4.5-14.0 cm long were placed with a new introducing tube in 21 patients: 10 stent tubes in 10 patients with recurrent dysphagia after radiation therapy or chemotherapy, 10 in 10 patients with esophageal cancer in whom surgical management was contraindicated, and two in one patient with postoperative benign stricture. No technical failure or procedural complications occurred. After the procedure, all but two patients could ingest most or all foods. In two patients with an esophagorespiratory fistula and one patient with esophageal rupture, the barbless stent tube successfully occluded the fistula and rupture site. The stent tube migrated in one patient. Fifteen patients are surviving, with the stent tubes patent for 3-35 weeks (mean patency, 13 weeks); the six other patients died 7-24 weeks (mean, 16 weeks) after stent placement. It is concluded that barbless stent tubes show promise in the management of dysphagia caused by esophageal strictures.