OBJECTIVE: The analysis of the variables that can influence on the immediate postoperative complications and hospital mortality of patients with esophageal cancer submitted to surgery. METHODS: In a retrospective analysis of data from 60 patients, variables such as provenience, disease history, previous diseases, smoking, alcohol drinking, disease stage, and the nature of the surgery were studied in order to check if they could have played a role on complications and death. RESULTS: The resulting variables: pleuropulmonary complications, sepsis, dehiscence of cervical anastomosis, mediastinitis, and death have been more significantly correlated to the following explanatory variables, respectively: palliative surgery, mediastinitis, tumor located in the superior thoracic segment, and sepsis. By means of univaried analysis, the explanatory variables have showed no significant correlation with dehiscence of thoracic anastomosis. Palliative surgery and respiratory insufficiency were the explanatory variables more significantly associated to the resulting variable pleuropulmonary complications. The interdependence of these variables has allowed to state that pleuropulmonary complications were 13.8 times more frequent in the patients with esophageal cancer submitted to palliative surgery developing respiratory insufficiency. CONCLUSION: Palliative surgery and tumor located in the superior segment have correlated to pleuropulmonary complications. There was no correlation at all between the variables here studied and dehiscence of intrathoracic anastomosis.
Esophageal neoplasms; Esophagus; Esofagectomy; Postoperative complications; Hospital mortality
