The esophageal-pleural stripe: an update.

Observations on the esophageal-pleural stripe were amplified by computed tomography. The relationship of the esophagus to the trachea is variable and, at times, the two may be side by side, the esophagus to the left. Under this condition, the naturally air-filled esophagus may mimic mediastinal emphysema or tracheomegaly; the barium-filled esophagus may mimic displacement by a mediastinal tumor.