Posttraumatic pseudo-Zenker’s diverticulum (with videos)

Abstract

Zenker’s diverticulum (ZD) is the posterior pulsion diverticulum below the esophageal introitus. We describe a case of posttraumatic pseudo-ZD, its etiology and management. A 57-year-old man with schizophrenia complained of sore throat and dysphagia. He believed that he had a foreign body (FB) in his throat and routinely swallowed various objects trying to push it down. As a result of repeated trauma, he was found to have an active laryngeal ulcer, a pseudo-ZD with a large fibrous polyp and a linear ulcer along the posterior upper esophagus. Intervention included endoscopic polypectomy within the diverticulum, removing sharp objects, and behavioral modifications. Two months later, his sore throat and dysphagia resolved. Repeat endoscopy revealed complete ulcer healing. Unfortunately, he still believes that there is an FB inside his throat. The potential complications related to repeated traumatic injury in the larynx and esophagus include perforation, ulceration, formation of pseudo-ZD and reactive fibrous polyps.