Laparoscopic Heller Myotomy for Achalasia Cardia—Initial Experience in a Teaching Institute

Laparoscopic Heller cardiomyotomy and Dor fundoplication is the surgical procedure of choice for esophageal achalasia. The aim of our study was to investigate the clinical outcome and safety of laparoscopic Heller–Dor procedure performed by using Hook electrocautery and as a teaching module for advanced laparoscopic surgery. Between January 2005 and December 2010, 25 consecutive patients with achalasia underwent laparoscopic Heller–Dor operation by a single surgeon. All the patients received upper gastrointestinal series (barium swallow), esophagogastroscopy, and esophageal manometry to exclude esophageal carcinoma and to confirm the diagnosis. All the patients were operated by laparoscopic modified Heller myotomy with Dor fundoplication by using hook electrocautery. Among 25 operated patients, 14 were male and 11 were female with a median age of 43 years (range 18–72 years). The mean operative time was 93.3 min (range 50–50 min), the mean operative blood loss was 90 ml (range 40–200 ml), the median time to oral feeding was 2 days (2–4 days), and the median hospital stay was 4 days (4–7 days). There was no conversion to open surgery. Intraoperative mucosal perforation was encountered in three patients and was repaired in all of them by laparoscopic suture. All the patients had an uneventful recovery without postoperative complication and had excellent clinical response (96 %) during follow-up. Laparoscopic Heller–Dor operation using hook electrocautery is safe, inexpensive, and effective treatment for achalasia which is useful for teaching and training surgical residents in advanced laparoscopic surgery.