Doctors at Pinnacle Hospitals treated a mediastinal duplication cyst using minimally invasive endoscopic technique, avoiding the need for conventional open thoracic surgery.

The procedure was performed by consultant medical gastroenterologist Dr. Sravan Kumar Korrapati on a patient suffering from severe dysphagia caused by an 8-cm cyst compressing the oesophagus. According to the hospital, such cysts are generally managed through open chest surgery because of their location in the mediastinum, which contains vital organs and major blood vessels.

The medical team accessed the cyst through the oesophagus using therapeutic endoscopy and created an internal drainage pathway, eliminating the need for external incisions, the hospital said. The patient recovered and was discharged within 48 hours.

Dr. Kumar said advances in therapeutic endoscopy were enabling effective treatment with minimal disruption to patients. The hospital said the approach could reduce procedural trauma, post-operative pain and recovery time compared with conventional surgery.