Acute phlegmonous infection of the gastrointestinal tract is characterized by purulent inflammation of the submucosa and muscular layer with sparing of the mucosa. The authors report a rare case of acute diffuse phlegmonous esophagogastritis, which was well diagnosed based on the typical chest computed tomographic (CT) findings and was successfully treated. A 48-yr-old man presented with left chest pain and dyspnea for three days. Chest radiograph on admission showed mediastinal widening and bilateral pleural effusion. The patient became febrile and the amount of left pleural effusion is increased on follow-up chest radiograph. Left closed thoracostomy was performed with pus drainage. A CT diagnosis of acute phlegmonous esophagogastritis was suggested and a surgery was decided due to worsening of clinical condition of the patient and radiologic findings. Esophageal myotomies were performed and the submucosal layer was filled with thick, cheesy materials. The patient was successfully discharged with no postoperative complication.
Acute Disease ; Cellulitis/complications/*diagnosis/radiography ; Drainage ; Esophagitis/complications/*diagnosis/surgery ; Gastritis/complications/*diagnosis/surgery ; Humans ; Klebsiella Infections/diagnosis ; Klebsiella pneumoniae/isolation & purification ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pleural Effusion/etiology/radiography ; Thoracostomy ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Emphysematous gastritis is a rare infection of the stomach wall with high mortality rate. It is caused by gas forming organisms and may arise by local spread through the mucosa or hematogenous dissemination from distant focus. Clinical manifestation includes acute abdomen with systemic toxicity, and diagnosis is based on radiologic demonstration of gas within the gastric wall. Treatment should be aimed to cover gram-negative organisms and anaerobes using wide-spectrum intravenous antibiotics, and sometimes surgical management may be needed in order to enhance survival. Herein, we report a case of emphysematous gastritis in a patient with end stage renal disease on hemodialysis.
Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use ; Emphysema ; Female ; Gastritis/complications/*diagnosis/radiography ; Gastroscopy ; Humans ; Kidney Failure, Chronic/complications/*diagnosis ; Klebsiella pneumoniae/isolation & purification ; Middle Aged ; Renal Dialysis ; Sputum/microbiology ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

The primary esophageal lymphoma is extremely rare, and shows various morphologic characteristics. Only a single case of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) type lymphoma confined to the esophagus has been reported in the literature. A 61-yr-old man was referred to our hospital for evaluation of an esophageal submucosal tumor (SMT) that had been detected incidentally by endoscopy. He had a history of pulmonary tuberculosis with long-term anti-tuberculosis medication 15 yr before, and also had a history of syphilis, which had been treated one year before. He had been taking a synthetic thyroid hormones for the past 10 months because of an autoimmune thyroiditis. Endoscopy showed a longitudinal round and tubular shaped smooth elevated lesion, which was covered with intact mucosa and located at the mid to distal esophagus, 31 cm to 39 cm from the incisor teeth. Endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) showed a huge longitudinal growing intermediate- to hypo-echoic mass located in the submucosal layer with internal small, various sized honeycomb-like anechoic lesions suggesting germinal centers. Subsequently, he underwent a surgery, which confirmed the mass as a primary esophageal low-grade B-cell lymphoma of MALT type.
Alcoholism/complications ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Esophageal Neoplasms/pathology* ; Esophageal Neoplasms/radiography ; Esophageal Neoplasms/ultrasonography ; Esophagoscopy ; Gastritis/complications ; Helicobacter Infections/complications ; Hemangioma, Cavernous/diagnosis ; Human ; Incidental Findings ; Lymphoma, Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue/pathology* ; Lymphoma, Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue/radiography ; Lymphoma, Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue/ultrasonography ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mucous Membrane/pathology ; Neoplasm Invasiveness ; Smoking ; Thyroiditis, Autoimmune/complications