SPONTANEOUS ESOPHAGEAL-PERFORATION IN AN ACUTE BURN PATIENT

Spontaneous perforation of the esophagus is an uncommon and catastroph ic event accompanied by extremely high morbidity and mortality. In a b urn patient, diagnosis may be delayed because of painful bums that may mask the underlying problem. Diagnosis is dependent on a high index o f suspicion and by inclusion of this entity in the differential diagno sis of chest pain. The authors report on a 45-year-old male who develo ped a spontaneous perforation of the esophagus while hospitalized for treatment of an 11% total body surface area burn. Diagnosis and initia tion of appropriate treatment resulted in salvage of this patient. The pathophysiology of this disease and a review of the literature are pr esented.