E-Mail karger@karger.com Original Article GE Port J Gastroenterol 2017;24:169–175 DOI: 10.1159/000453115 Treatment of Postoperative Leaks of the Upper Gastrointestinal Tract with Colonic Self-Expandable Metal Stents Paula Sousa António Castanheira Diana Martins Juliana Pinho Ricardo Araújo Eugénia Cancela Paula Ministro Américo Silva Gastroenterology Department, Centro Hospitalar Tondela/Viseu, Viseu, Portugal syndrome, and an esophagectomy due to esophageal can- cer. The leaks were detected on average 17 days after the initial surgery. All patients needed admission to a critical care unit after index surgery. Stent placement was technically feasible in all patients. The median residence time of the stents was 7 weeks, and no complications were verified when they were removed. There were no cases of stent mi- gration. The treatment was successful in all patients, with complete healing of the leaks. Discussion and Conclusions: The placement of colonic FSEMS seems to be successful and safe in the treatment of postoperative leaks of the upper gas- trointestinal tract. © 2016 Sociedade Portuguesa de Gastrenterologia Published by S. Karger AG, Basel Tratamento de Deiscências e Fístulas Cirúrgicas do Trato Gastrointestinal Alto com Próteses Metálicas Autoexpansíveis do Cólon Palavras Chave Fístula anastomótica · Doenças gastrointestinais · Complicações pós-operatórias · Stents metálicos autoexpansíveis Keywords Anastomotic leak · Gastrointestinal diseases · Postoperative complications · Self-expandable metallic stents Abstract Introduction: The use of self-expandable metal stents (SEMS) for the treatment of postoperative leaks of the upper gastro- intestinal tract is already established. However, there are dis- crepancies between the relatively small caliber of the esoph- ageal stents available and the postsurgical luminal size, which may determine an inadequate juxtaposition. As co- lonic stents have a bigger diameter, they might be more ad- equate. Additionally, stents with a larger diameter might have a lower risk of migration. Materials and Methods: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and complica- tions associated with the use of colonic fully covered SEMS (FSEMS) in the treatment of postoperative leaks in critical pa- tients. All patients with postoperative leaks of the upper gas- trointestinal tract treated with colonic stents (Hanarostent ® CCI) between 2010 and 2013 were retrospectively included. Results: Four patients with postoperative leaks were treated with colonic SEMS. The underlying surgeries were a gastric bypass, an esophagogastrectomy for Boerhaave syndrome, a primary repair of esophagopleural fistula due to Boerhaave Received: July 25,2016 Accepted after revision: October 30, 2016 Published online: December 21, 2016 Dr. Paula Sousa Gastroenterology Department, Centro Hospitalar Tondela/Viseu Av. Rei D. Duarte PT–3504-509 Viseu (Portugal) E-Mail paulacrfsousa  @  gmail.com © 2016 Sociedade Portuguesa de Gastrenterologia Published by S. Karger AG, Basel www.karger.com/pjg Tis article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY- NC-ND) (http://www.karger.com/Services/OpenAccessLicense). Usage and distribution for commercial purposes as well as any dis- tribution of modifed material requires written permission.