Diagnostic Accuracy of Barium Swallow Study for Differentiating Benign and Malignant Esophageal Strictures Using Endoscopy with Biopsy as Gold Standard

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to determine the diagnostic accuracy of barium swallow for differentiating malignant from benign oesophageal strictures using endoscopy with biopsy as the reference standard.

METHODOLOGY

This cross-sectional validation study included 88 consecutively selected adults with dysphagia at Rehman Medical Institute from 1 March 2023 to 1 August 2025. Barium swallow and endoscopic biopsy were performed within two weeks. Malignancy was the positive condition. Diagnostic indices, likelihood ratios, Cohen’s kappa and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) were calculated with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).