thoracic complications of upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in zagazig university hospitals. a cross-sectional single center study

Upper Gastro Intestinal Endoscopy (UGIE) is a commonly performed diagnostic and/or therapeutic procedure for evaluation of patients with various abdominal complaints. UGIE complications vary including; pneumonia, mediastinitis, oesophago-pleural fistula. The reported complications of UGIE are diverse and vary from one center to another. Aim: The study aimed to report the thoracic complications in patients underwent UGIE during the period between July and December 2016. Patients and methods: One hundred and twenty patients, candidates for UGIE were included in the study. All patients were subjected to: thorough medical history, complete general and local chest and abdominal examination, routine laboratory investigations, chest X-ray and chest computed tomography (CT) if needed, spirometric pulmonary function tests (PFT), arterial blood gases (ABGs), pre and post UGIE. Results: Patients were 84 males and 36 female, age ranged from 25 to 70 years old, hematemesis and/or melena was the most common presentation (65%). Oesophageal varices was the most common endoscopic finding (50% of cases). Chest pain, cough and bronchitis were more common among Oesophageal Varices Sclerotherapy (OVS) patients. Pneumonia, atelectasis, pleural effusion and mediastinitis were reported after OVS. There was significant difference regarding spirometric parameters before, 2 days and 3 weeks after the procedure in patients underwent OVS and Gastric Varices Sclerotherapy (GVS), while no significant difference was reported in patients underwent Oesophageal Varices (OV) band ligation and peptic ulcer diagnosis before, 2 days and 3 weeks after the procedure. Conclusions: Thoracic complications were more common in OVS and GVS than in OV band ligation.