Surgical Approaches for the Esophagus

Thoracic surgery technological advancements have led to a greater use of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) techniques. The authors preferably perform most cases using MIS. With MIS, complications such as intraoperative hemorrhage, length of hospital stay, as well as pulmonary complications are reduced. However, for certain procedures such as a pharyngoesophageal diverticulectomy, the authors still favor an open surgical approach as the endoscopic approach has not proven to be superior.