[Congenital stenosis of the esophagus due to tracheobronchial heterotopia. Review of the literature. Apropos of a case].

A case of congenital esophageal stenosis due to tracheobronchial remnants is reported. This is a very rare condition. Only 46 previous cases have been reported in the French and English literature. The cause is thought to be esophageal sequestration of a tracheobronchial anlage before embryologic separation. Esophageal atresia is frequently associated with this rare abnormality. Symptoms generally appear early in infancy, but are sometimes very discrete and diagnosis can be made later in infancy of exceptionally in adulthood. When there is no evidence of gastric reflux and caustic ingestion, symptoms of esophageal obstruction with date back to infancy or childhood are often the only sign suggestive of congenital stenosis. However, the diagnosis can only be established by microscopic examination of the entire esophageal wall, as endoscopic biopsy will not show the heterotopic tissue lying deep under the normal mucosa. The presence of tracheobronchial remnants in the esophageal wall explains why treatment by dilatation is unsatisfactory or impossible. Definitive treatment involves excision of the stenotic segment.