Teflon pledget reinforced fundoplication causes symptomatic gastric and esophageal lumenal penetration

Background Nissen fundoplication has become the standard operative procedure for the treatment of severe gastroesophageal reflux disease. The use of Teflon pledgets in Nissen fundoplications by our unit has been associated with a number of complications that has led to a change of technique in performing these operations. Methods We reviewed our database of all patients who had fundoplications that involved the use of pledgets and identified those who had represented with postoperative complications related to pledget erosion/migration. Results We identified 11 patients to date from a total of 1,175 fundoplications who had symptomatic pledget erosion occurring between 2 and 85 months after surgery (mean time 33.3 months). Symptoms included dysphagia, recurrent symptomatic gastroesophageal reflux, chest pain, and melaena, and in some cases significant morbidity was associated with the erosion. No common factor predisposing these patients to pledget erosion was identified. In the majority of cases removal of the pledget was associated with resolution of the symptoms. A review of the literature does not reveal any similar studies but problems associated with the erosion and migration of Teflon prostheses are described. Conclusions The use of Teflon pledgets in fundoplication is associated with a small but significant risk of complications that has led to our unit abandoning this technique.