Outcome and complications of long-term self-expanding esophageal stenting.

Esophageal stenting with self-expanding plastic or covered metal stents is believed to be safe and effective. As data on the outcome of patients with long-term stenting are not available, this study was conducted to evaluate the safety and efficacy of long-term esophageal stenting. From 2002 to 2008, 70 patients with long-term esophageal stenting for various indications from a prospective database were included into further analysis. The median stent period was 297 (124-1980) days during a mean follow-up time of 55 ± 52.4 months. Overall complication rate was 30% with a primary success rate of 97.2%. The stent-related total reintervention rate was 17.1%. There were no correlations between stent characteristics and the risk of complication or migration. No stent-related death was observed. Our data provide evidence that long-period esophageal stenting is safe and effective for various indications.