Background
Esophageal perforation is a rare but life-threatening
condition1. Early detection and diagnosis are
important to ensure good patient outcomes. At least half of esophageal
perforations are iatrogenic, oftentimes caused by endoscopic
instrumentation use in the upper gastrointestinal
tract1. Still, about a third of esophageal
perforations are spontaneous1. The scientific evidence
that steers management of esophageal perforation is based primarily upon
retrospective studies at single institutions, as well as on a few
nationwide studies1-8. Randomized studies
are virtually non-existent1. The case that we present
is of a patient that was eventually found to have a contained esophageal
perforation instead of the initially suspected retropharyngeal abscess.