Scintigraphic evaluation of Zenker's diverticulum

Feasibility and usefulness of using swallow contrast-enhanced ultrasound to diagnose Zenker's diverticulum: preliminary results

Zenker's diverticulum (ZD) may be misdiagnosed on conventional ultrasound as a thyroid nodule or other lesion. A barium esophagram is usually used to confirm the diagnosis; however, this procedure exposes the patient to radiation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of using swallow contrast-enhanced ultrasound (swallow-CEUS) to diagnose ZD. Ten consecutive patients with ZD (7 men and 3 women, aged 67 ± 11 y) were included in the study. In 4 patients, ZD was incidentally found on head and neck ultrasound, and in 6 patients, ZD was suspected because of dysphagia. All lesions could be detected on conventional ultrasound before swallow-CEUS. Ten healthy volunteers (8 men and 2 women, aged 60 ± 12 y) were chosen as a control group. Written informed consent was obtained. With the patient in the sitting or upright position, conventional ultrasound was performed first to image the lesion, then the patient was asked to swallow ultrasound contrast agent (UCA) (2-4 drops of SonoVue diluted with about 200 mL of tap water). Transity of the contrast agent in the esophagus was imaged with CEUS. Retention of the UCA in the diverticulum was monitored for at least 3 min. All patients underwent a barium esophagram as the gold standard. Swallow-CEUS revealed that in all patients (100%), the UCA was transported from the pharynx to the esophagus while the patient swallowed. ZD appeared as a pouch-shaped structure at the posterior pharyngo-esophageal junction that retained UCA longer than 3 min. The barium esophagram confirmed the diagnosis of ZD in all patients. For the 10 volunteers, no abnormal structure (retaining UCA) was detected during or after swallowing of UCA. With the advantages of no radiation and bedside availability, swallow-CEUS may become a method of choice in confirmation of the diagnosis of ZD, especially when ZD is suspected on conventional ultrasound.

Surface electromyography in preoperative evaluation and postoperative monitoring of Zenker's diverticulum

Patients with Zenker's diverticulum (ZD) underwent surface electromyography (sEMG) evaluation to determine sEMG patterns specific for ZD. Group 1 comprised patients with proven long-standing ZD that refused surgical treatment (n = 11, age mean = 55.7 years). Group 2 comprised surgically operated on patients with ZD (n = 6, age mean = 61 years). The timing, amplitude, and graphic patterns of activity of the masseter, submental, and laryngeal strap muscles were examined during voluntary single water swallows ("normal"), single swallows of excessive amounts of water (20 ml, "stress test"), and continuous drinking of 100 cc of water. The muscle activity in pharyngeal and initial esophageal stages of swallowing was measured, and graphic records were evaluated in relation to timing and voltage. The data were compared with the previously established normative database. The main sEMG patterns of ZD are (1) duration of swallowing and drinking is longer than normal (p < 0.05), (2) electric amplitude of laryngeal strap muscles during swallowing activity is higher than normal (p < 0.05), and (3) regurgitation peaks immediately after swallow followed by secondary swallow of the regurgitated portion of a bolus as seen at the sEMG records are specific graphic patterns for the ZD. Zenker's diverticulum has its own specific sEMG patterns. Surface EMG, being an important screening method for patients with dysphagia, is a valuable additional diagnostic tool for ZD. Because it is noninvasive and nonradiographic, it can be used for monitoring of long-standing cases of the disease as well as monitoring of postsurgical recovery.