Around 10 years ago, Vietnam Veteran Eugene Volek was at a restaurant eating with a group of friends when he had trouble swallowing his food. Choking, he ran to the bathroom.
“All of a sudden, I couldn’t swallow,” said Volek, who served in Vietnam in 1966. “From there on, it started more and more. I often had to go to the bathroom to throw up due to choking and then come back and try to eat. It was miserable.”
Volek was diagnosed with achalasia, a muscle disorder in the esophagus that impacts about one in 100,000 patients. Instead of opting for surgery, Volek tried to live with the condition by modifying his diet.
In early 2023, the Gastrointestinal Section at Michael E. DeBakey VA in Houston began offering an innovative minimally invasive procedure called per oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM).
The procedure involves the insertion of a narrow tube with a camera through the mouth. Doctors cut muscles in the esophagus, which prevents the muscles tightening and interfering with swallowing.
“One of the key takeaways about per oral endoscopic myotomy is that it’s not surgery. Surgery is definitely a concern for some patients,” said Dr. Wasseem Skef, Houston VA gastroenterologist. “It’s an endoscopic procedure. It is also more than 90% effective in resolving swallowing issues.”
Skef said a key factor in bringing the procedure to Veterans at Houston VA has been the VA partnership with Dr. Salmaan Jawaid, program director of the Advanced Endoscopy Fellowship and a gastroenterologist at Baylor College of Medicine. Jawaid has performed the procedure more than 100 times at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center.
So far, Houston VA has treated 12 Veterans, including Volek.
“I’m enjoying life and enjoy eating.”
“Now that we have this specialized expertise, we hope to grow the program and offer it to more Veterans who either aren’t candidates for surgery or don’t want to undergo surgery,” said Skef, who is board certified in internal medicine and gastroenterology.
For Volek, it’s hard to overstate how grateful he is for a better quality of life.
“Before, I couldn’t even eat half a plate of food. It would make me so mad I’d throw it away. The procedure was a lifesaver for me. Now, I’m enjoying life and enjoy eating.”