Eradication Rate Using a First-line Triple Therapy for Helicobacter pylori Infection in Yeongdong, Gangwon Province, Korea

Background/Aims@#The eradication success rate of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection with a first-line standard triple therapy (STT) has been decreasing in Korea. However, treatment outcomes of H. pylori infection in Yeongdong, Gangwon Province have been scarcely reported. This study aimed to investigate the treatment outcomes of H. pylori infection in a single tertiary care hospital with regional characteristics. @*Materials and Methods@#From July 2018 to June 2019, a total of 592 patients who underwent STT consisting of a proton pump inhibitor, amoxicillin, and clarithromycin for 7 to 14 days as a first-line H. pylori eradication therapy were included. Demographic data and treatment outcomes were retrospectively reviewed using medical records. @*Results@#The median age of 592 patients was 58 years (range 23 to 86) and 329 patients (55.6%) were men. The indication for eradication therapy included chronic atrophic gastritis (57.9%), peptic ulcer disease (19.6%), and gastric neoplasm after endoscopic resection (5.9%). Most patients (92.2%) received a 7-day course of STT. Eradication rate of STT was 64.0% (379/592). Rescue therapy was performed in 146 patients, and the final eradication rate reached 85.6% (507/592). @*Conclusions@#Eradication rate of STT in Yeongdong area of Gangwon Province was unsatisfactory, warranting the consideration of a first-line eradication regimen other than STT.

Long-term Clinical Outcomes and Risk of Peritoneal Seeding after Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection for Early Gastric Cancer: A Focus on Perforation during the Procedure

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The risk of peritoneal seeding following perforation after endoscopic resection in patients with early gastric cancer is unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate long-term clinical outcomes including peritoneal seeding and overall survival rate following gastric perforation during endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD). METHODS: Between January 2002 and March 2015, 556 patients were diagnosed with early gastric cancer and underwent ESD. Among them, 34 patients (6.1%) experienced gastric perforation during ESD. Clinicopathological data of these patients were reviewed to determine the clinical outcome and evidence of peritoneal seeding. RESULTS: Among 34 patients with perforation, macroperforations occurred during ESD in 17 cases (50%), and microperforation was identified in the remaining 17 cases (50%). All patients except one who underwent emergency surgery due to severe panperitonitis were managed successfully by endoscopic clipping (n=27) or conservative medical treatment (n=6). No evidence of peritoneal seeding after perforation associated with ESD was found in our cohort. Cumulative survival rates did not differ between the perforation and non-perforation groups (p=0.691). Furthermore, mortality was not associated with perforation. In addition, multivariate analysis showed that tumor size and achievement of curative resection were related to cancer recurrence. Perforation was not associated with cancer recurrence and survival. CONCLUSIONS: Perforation associated with ESD does not lead to worse clinical outcomes such as peritoneal seeding or cumulative survival rate. Therefore, periodic follow-up might be possible if curative resection was achieved even if perforation occurred during ESD.

An Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma with Lymph Node Metastasis Presenting as a Small Subepithelial Tumor

A subepithelial tumor-like esophageal carcinoma is rare. We report a case of an esophageal squamous cell carcinoma with lymph node metastasis presenting as a small subepithelial tumor. A 68-year-old man presented to our hospital complaining of hoarseness since last three months. Endoscopic examination revealed a 1 cm hard and fixed subepithelial tumor with surface erosion in the lower esophagus. A biopsy specimen was obtained using conventional forceps, and histopathological evaluation revealed few atypical squamous epithelial cells. Subsequent EUS demonstrated a homogeneous hypoechoic lesion in the deep mucosal layer. A CT scan of the chest showed a 3 cm mass in the right upper paratracheal area. EUS-guided fine needle biopsy of the lesion led to the diagnosis of squamous cell carcinoma with lymph node metastasis.

Relation of Enteric α-Synuclein to Gastrointestinal Dysfunction in Patients With Parkinson's Disease and in Neurologically Intact Subjects

BACKGROUND/AIMS: α-Synucleinopathy in the brain is the neuropathological hallmark of Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, the functional impact of α-synucleinopathy in the enteric nervous system remains unknown. We aim to evaluate the association between gastrointestinal (GI) dysfunction and α-synuclein (αSYN) pathology in the stomach and colon of PD patients and controls, as well as to investigate the association between the αSYN pathology in GI tract and future PD risk. METHODS: A total of 35 PD patients and 52 neurologically intact subjects were enrolled in this study. Endoscopic biopsies were performed, and then immunohistochemical staining for αSYN was performed. All subjects completed the validated Rome III questionnaire for the assessment of GI symptoms. The association between GI symptoms and the αSYN pathology in GI mucosa was evaluated. Incident PD cases were assessed during a median follow-up of 46 months. RESULTS: The proportion of self-reported constipation and functional constipation through the Rome III questionnaire was significantly higher in PD patients than in controls (P 0.05). No incident PD cases were diagnosed during study period. CONCLUSIONS: Our present study suggests that the deposition of αSYN in the mucosal enteric nervous system may not be reflected by functional impairment of the affected segment of the gut.

Local recurrence and subsequent endoscopic treatment after endoscopic piecemeal mucosal resection with or without precutting in the colorectum

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Precutting before endoscopic piecemeal mucosal resection (EPMR) may increase colorectal polyp resection effectiveness. We aimed to identify risk factors for recurrence after conventional EPMR (CEPMR) and precut EPMR (PEPMR) and investigated endoscopic treatment outcomes for recurrent cases. METHODS: The medical records of patients with colorectal polyps treated by EPMR were analyzed. Patients without follow-up surveillance colonoscopies were excluded. RESULTS: Among 359 lesions, the local recurrence rate on the first surveillance colonoscopy was 5.8% (18/312) and 6.4% (3/47) after CEPMR and PEPMR, respectively. Among lesions without recurrence at the first surveillance colonoscopy, the rates of late recurrence on subsequent surveillance colonoscopy were 3.9% (6/152) and 0% after CEPMR and PEPMR, respectively. Larger tumor size was the only independent risk factor for recurrence (odds ratio, 7.93; 95% confidence interval, 1.95–32.30; P<0.001). Endoscopic treatment was performed for all 27 recurrences. A combination of ≥2 endoscopic treatment modalities was used in 19 of 27 recurrences (70.4%). Surveillance colonoscopies were performed in 20 of 27 recurrences after endoscopic treatment. One (5.0%) had a re-recurrence and was treated by surgical resection because recurrence occurred at the appendiceal orifice. Nineteen of 20 lesions (95.0%) could be cured endoscopically, although 3 of the 19 showed second or third recurrences and were treated by repeat endoscopic resection. CONCLUSIONS: The local recurrence rates after CEPMR and PEPMR were similar. Larger tumor size was an independent risk factor for local recurrence after EPMR. Endoscopic treatment of recurrences resulted in high cure rates, although combination methods were necessary in many cases.

Underestimation of Smoking Rates in an East Asian Population with Crohn's Disease

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The reported rates of current smoking at the time of Crohn’s disease (CD) diagnosis tend to be low in East Asian studies. However, we hypothesized that East Asian patients may be reluctant to disclose their smoking history, likely because of the influence of the Confucian culture. METHODS: We prospectively re-evaluated the smoking status at diagnosis in 1,437 Korean CD patients whose smoking status had been reported in our previous study. RESULTS: After re-evaluation, the current smokers at diagnosis increased from 388 patients (27.0%) to 445 patients (31.0%), indicating that 12.8% (57 of 445 patients) of the current smokers at diagnosis did not disclose their smoking status at their initial evaluation. The proportion of current smokers at diagnosis who had initially concealed their smoking status was significantly higher among the female patients (29.7%, 11/37) compared with the male patients (11.3%, 46/408) (p18 years old at diagnosis (8.6%, 35/406) (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Subgroups of Korean CD patients, particularly young patients and female patients, are reluctant to disclose their smoking history. Therefore, the suggestion that smoking is not a risk factor for the development of CD in East Asians should be made with caution.

Efficacy of Precut Endoscopic Mucosal Resection for Treatment of Rectal Neuroendocrine Tumors

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Endoscopic resection is the first-line treatment for rectal neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) measuring < 1 cm and those between 1 and 2 cm in size. However, conventional endoscopic resection cannot achieve complete resection in all cases. We aimed to analyze clinical outcomes of precut endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR-P) used for the management of rectal NET. METHODS: EMR-P was used to treat rectal NET in 72 patients at a single tertiary center between 2011 and 2015. Both, circumferential precutting and EMR were performed with the same snare device in all patients. Demographics, procedural details, and histopathological features were reviewed for all cases. RESULTS: Mean size of the tumor measured endoscopically was 6.8±2.8 mm. En bloc and complete resection was achieved in 71 (98.6%) and 67 patients (93.1%), respectively. The mean time required for resection was 9.0±5.6 min. Immediate and delayed bleeding developed in six (8.3%) and 4 patients (5.6%), respectively. Immediate bleeding observed during EMR-P was associated with the risk of delayed bleeding. CONCLUSIONS: Both, the en bloc and complete resection rates of EMR-P in the treatment of rectal NETs using the same snare for precutting and EMR were noted to be high. The procedure was short and safe. EMR-P may be a good treatment choice for the management of rectal NETs.

The Usefulness of Computed Tomography before and after Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection of Early Gastric Cancer / 대한소화기학회지

No abstract available.

Superficial Esophageal Neoplasms Overlying Leiomyomas Removed by Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection: Case Reports and Review of the Literature

The coexistence of an epithelial lesion and a subepithelial lesion is uncommon. In almost all such cases, the coexistence of these lesions appears to be incidental. It is also extremely rare to encounter a neoplasm in the surface epithelium that overlies a benign mesenchymal tumor in the esophagus. Several cases of a coexisting esophageal neoplasm overlying a leiomyoma that is treated endoscopically or surgically have been reported previously. Here, three cases of a superficial esophageal neoplasm that developed over an esophageal leiomyoma and was then successfully removed by endoscopic submucosal dissection are described.

A Case of Complete Remission of Mucosa-associated Lymphoid Tissue Lymphoma of the Urinary Bladder after Eradication of Helicobacter Pylori / 대한내과학회지

Primary lymphoma of the urinary bladder is rare, comprising 0.2% of extranodal lymphomas. The predominant subtype of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) is extranodal marginal zone lymphoma. We report a case of MALT lymphoma of the urinary bladder in a 53-year-old female patient presenting with a five-year history of persistent hematuria and urinary frequency. A cystoscopy revealed multiple nodular lesions at the posterior wall and trigone of the bladder. The tissue obtained by cold-cup biopsy revealed lymphoid infiltration consistent with low-grade MALT lymphoma. Image studies revealed that the tumor originated from the urinary bladder and there was no evidence of metastases. The patient was positive for a rapid urease test. Because of the relationship between gastric MALT lymphoma and Helicobacter pylori, the patient was treated with antibiotics to eradicate Helicobacter pylori. The lymphoma subsequently disappeared and the patient has remained in persistent complete remission for eight years.

Two Cases of Birt-Hogg-Dube Syndrome with Pulmonary Cysts / 대한내과학회지

Birt-Hogg-Dube (BHD) syndrome is a rare autosomal-dominant disease caused by germline folliculin (FLCN) mutations, characterized by fibrofolliculoma or trichodiscoma, renal tumors, and multiple lung cysts with or without spontaneous pneumothorax. Here, we report two cases of BHD syndrome that presented with bilateral pulmonary cysts. One patient was a 39-year-old woman who had a history of pneumothorax, multiple papules on her cheeks, and a family history of the same skin lesions and renal cell carcinoma in her father. BHD syndrome was confirmed by molecular tests that revealed a missense mutation in FLCN gene (exon 4, c.31T > C). The other patient was a 56-year-old man who showed FCLN gene polymorphism and typical radiopathological features of multiple cysts in the lung, but apparently no other manifestation.

Polypoid Arteriovenous Malformation Presenting with Jejunojejunal Intussusceptions in an Adult

Jejunal polypoid arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) and jejunojejunal intussusceptions are both rare. Here, we present the case of a 61-year-old woman who suffered intermittent episodes of abdominal pain over the course of 13 years. A computed tomography scan of her abdomen and pelvis revealed a distal jejunojejunal intussusception. A suspected low density mass was observed at the tip of the intussusception. Treatment comprised laparoscopic small bowel resection with end-to-end jejunostomy. The final diagnosis was a polypoid AVM measuring 5x3.5x3 cm. We suggest that polypoid AVM should be considered as a differential diagnosis in patients presenting with small intestinal neoplasms.