The Kirschner operation—a forgotten procedure

Abstract

Abstract Kirschner, in 1920, described an operation for benign stricture of the oesophagus. This entails division of the cervical oesophagus, closing the distal portion, bringing the stomach to the neck, and anastomosing the fundus to the proximal divided portion of the oesophagus. This operation has not been performed since, because of the tedious anastomosis between the divided abdominal oesophagus and the jejunum. However, it may be applied in the treatment of malignant oesophagobronchial fistula when it is desirable to isolate the fistula from the upper alimentary tract. This paper describes the operation as carried out in the treatment of 18 cases of advanced oesophageal carcinoma, 6 of whom had a oesophagobronchial fistula. When the operation was successful the patients could eat a normal diet without spasms of cough.