- A dictionary of medical eponyms

Heimlich's operation

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    This is Heimlich's own description, taken from the internet:
    "The reversed gastric tube operation, the Heimlich operation for replacement of the esophagus, which I came out with in the 1950s, is very simple. It is a matter of replacing the esophagus by making two tubes out of the stomach, which is really one large tube, and carrying the blood supply with the part of the stomach that will become the new esophagus. The new tube is made from the stomach, by inserting a double row of staples and cutting between them. Then you rotate this tube upward and join it to the throat and the new tube becomes the new esophagus. The old diseased esophagus is closed off and the person can eat normally."

    Heimlich's operation was the first successful organ replacement and is now used in operating rooms throughout the world.

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