SPONTANEOUS RUPTURE OF THE HEALTHY ESOPHAGUS

Abstract

Because of the interest stimulated by the observation of a case and the apparent rarity of this condition, I have reviewed the literature on this subject. Spontaneous rupture of the healthy esophagus should include those cases of rupture<i>per se</i>, and exclude those in which the rupture has been due to trauma either from within or without, and also cases of perforation, the result of chronic peptic ulcer diverticulum, tuberculosis, syphilis, cancer and aneurysm. In selecting cases one must also reject those in which there has possibly been post-mortem digestion of tissue and those cases of esophagomalacia. Failure to eliminate such may lead to erroneous conception of the disease. For this reason I have not included the cases reported by Colegrove,¹Heyfelder,²Guersent,³Lomax,⁴Oppolzer,⁵Howse,⁶Boyd,⁷West and Andrews,⁸and Bailey.⁹ <h3>ETIOLOGY</h3> The disease is most frequently seen in men