The Effects of Flumazenil on the Recovery Time and Satisfaction of the Use of Sedative Endoscopy with Midazolam / 대한소화기내시경학회지

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Treatment with flumazenil results in rapid reversal from sedation. In addition, the use of flumazenil can prevent accidents or memory loss after endoscopy. This study was conducted to evaluate the role of flumazenil according to dose. METHODS: A total of 150 consecutive outpatients were randomly allocated into three groups: patients given normal saline (control group), patients given 0.25 mg flumazenil (0.25 mg flumazenil group) and patients given 0.5 mg flumazenil (0.5 mg flumazenil group). Flumazenil or normal saline was injected 10 minutes after the completion of endoscopy. We evaluated the recovery time, time to discharge, patient satisfaction, and memory loss after discharge. RESULTS: The control group consisted of 44 subjects, the 0.25 mg flumazenil group consisted of 46 subjects and the 0.5 mg flumazenil group consisted of 45 subjects. The recovery time was significantly shorter in the two flumazenil groups as compared to the control group (28.5+/-15.0 min, 13.8+/-3.7 min, 12.4+/-1.7 min for the control group, 0.25 mg flumazenil group and 0.5 mg flumazenil group, respectively)(p<0.001). The time to discharge after an examination was shorter in the flumazenil groups and showed dose-dependency (41.2+/-20.5 min, 22.1+/-10.9 min, 16.4+/-2.2 min for the control group, 0.25 mg flumazenil group and 0.5 mg flumazenil group, respectively) (p<0.001). There was no significant difference in patient satisfaction among the three groups. The degree of memory recall was better in the 0.5 mg flumazenil group than in the other two groups (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Flumazenil reversal of midazolam sedative endoscopy results in fast recovery and is helpful to minimize memory loss after an examination without interference of satisfaction.

Combined Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection and Snaring for the Resection of Colorectal Lesions / 대한소화기내시경학회지

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Endoscopic en-bloc resection of the large colorectal lesions is technically difficult. The aim of this study is to evaluate the usefulness of combined endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) and snare resection for treating colorectal lesions. METHODS: We enrolled 23 patients (M:F=14:9, age range: 46~76 years) with 25 colo rectal tumors that were around or above 20 mm in diameter. A combined treatment of ESD and snare resection was performed. RESULTS: The mean size of the 25 lesions was 22.6+/-8.2 mm (range: 15.0~44.0 mm). Ten lesions were laterally spreading tumors and 15 lesions were found in the rectum. On the histopathologic examination, 16 lesions were adenocarcinoma, 2 lesions were villous adenoma, 1 lesion was a villotubular adenoma, 5 lesions were tubular adenoma and 1 lesion was a hyperplastic polyp. The mean resection time was 27+/-22 min (range: 10~91 min). En bloc resection was possible for 19 lesions (76%). Of these, 18 specimens showed clear resection margins and 1 showed a positive deep resection margin. Of the 6 piecemeal resection cases, 2 showed positive lateral resection margins. Therefore, an 88% tumor free resection rate was obtained. CONCLUSIONS: Combined ESD and snare resection may be an effective and safe modality for the resection of large colorectal lesions.

Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection for Gastric Tumors: Complete Resection Rate, Resection Time and Complications in Comparison with Endoscopic Mucosal Resection after Circumferential Mucosal Incision with a Needle Knife / 대한소화기내시경학회지

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is a novel technique for an en bloc resection of mucosal tumors over 2 cm in diameter. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy, resection time and complications of ESD using a needle knife (needle-ESD) with a comparison those encountered using endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) after a circumferential mucosal incision with a needle knife (needle-EMR). METHODS: Thirty-three consecutive patients with early gastric cancer or gastric adenoma who underwent needle-ESD at the Asan Medical Center between December 2004 and March 2005 were retrospectively reviewed, and compared with the data from 33 consecutive patients who underwent needle-EMR between March 2001 and June 2001. RESULTS: Both the enbloc resection and complete resection could be achieved by needle-ESD in all the patients, while the corresponding percentages were 76% (en bloc resection, 25/33) and 94% (complete resection, 31/33) in the needle-EMR group. The resection time was longer (22.7 vs. 11.6 min) in the needle-ESD group than in the needle-EMR group. However, there was no significant difference in the complication rate between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with the needle-EMR, needle-ESD has significant benefits, particularly regarding the en bloc and complete resection rate despite the technical difficulty and longer resection time.

Development of Early Gastric Cancer 38 Months after the Complete Remission of Helicobacter pylori Associated Gastric MALT Lymphoma / 대한소화기내시경학회지

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) has been etiologically linked with primary gastric mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma and gastric carcinoma; however, synchronous and metachronous development of these two neoplasm is a rare finding. The metachronous development of early gastric cancer following gastric MALT lymphoma is even more exceptional, and less than 10 cases have been reported on the literature. We encountered one case of early gastric cancer which occurred 38 months after the complete remission of H. pylori associated gastric MALT lymphoma. We report here on this case along with a review of the literature.

Clinical characteristics of constipation associated with diabetes mellitus / 대한내과학회지

BACKGROUND: Constipation occurs frequently in diabetes mellitus (DM). However, there are few reports that investigated the characteristics of constipation associated with DM. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical features of constipation associated with DM. METHODS: Among constipated patients who visited Asan Medical Center from January 2000 to December 2004, 45 patients with DM (DM group) and 104 patients without DM (non-DM group) were included in this study. We reviewed the clinical presentation, results of anorectal manometry, colon transit time study, and defecogram. We also analyzed the response to biofeedback therapy. RESULTS: The severity of constipation symptoms before treatment was not different between DM and non-DM group. Patients with colon transit time over 56 hours were more frequent in DM group than in non-DM group (21/45, 46.7% vs. 31/104, 29.8% ; p=0.047). Among DM group, colon transit time and the duration of DM showed positive correlation (r=0.431, p=0.003). The resting anal sphincter pressure was significantly lower in DM group than in non-DM group (43.5+/-21.5 mmHg vs. 51.7+/-22.6 mmHg ; p=0.048). The results of defecography were similar between DM and non-DM group. Successful responses to biofeedback therapy were not different between DM and non-DM group (19/34, 55.9% vs. 43/79, 54.4% ; p=0.887). CONCLUSIONS: Slow transit constipation was more frequent in DM group than in non-DM group. The successful responses to biofeedback therapy appear to be similar between DM and non-DM group.

Comparison of Double Balloon Enteroscopy and Small Bowel Series for the Evaluation of Small Bowel Lesions / 대한소화기학회지

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The role of double balloon enteroscopy (DBE) is still evolving. The aim of this study was to compare the diagnostic yield of DBE with that of small bowel series (SBS). METHODS: We enrolled patients with suspected small bowel disease consecutively, and performed both DBE and SBS in all patients. RESULTS: Eighteen patients (M:F=12:6, 14-82 years) were included. Indications for small bowel evaluation were obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (10), abdominal pain (5), diarrhea (2) and abnormal CT finding (1). Of 10 obscure gastrointestinal bleeding patients, 6 showed the same findings in both studies. However, 4 showed negative findings in SBS while DBE detected erosions or ulcerations. Of 5 abdominal pain patients, 3 showed the same results in both studies. However, 2 demonstrated different results. One was suspected of early Crohn's disease in SBS, but proved to be normal in DBE, and the other was suspected of malignancy in SBS but was suspected of benign ulcers in DBE. Of 2 chronic diarrhea patients, one was diagnosed as Crohn's disease in both studies. The other was suspected of tuberculosis in SBS but diagnosed as lymphangiectasia by DBE with biopsy. One patient with jejunal wall thickening in CT proved to be normal in both DBE and SBS. There were no serious complications associated with DBE and SBS. CONCLUSIONS: DBE is better than SBS in terms of diagnostic accuracy. DBE may become an important method for the evaluation of small bowel diseases.