Peroral endoscopic myotomy for achalasia / 中华消化内镜杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and the feasibility of peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) for achalasia (AC). Methods The clinical data of 8 patients diagnosed as having AC and receiving POEM at our center from August 2010 to December 2010 were reviewed. The patients were 16-62 years old, mean 43yr, whose disease courses lasted for 2-20 years, mean 8.4 years. The key procedures of POEM were as the following, esophageal mucosal incision, submucosal tunneling by endoscopic submucosal dissection ( ESD), endoscopic myotomy of the circular muscle and closure of mucosal entry by hemostatic clips. Results All the 8 patients underwent POEM successfully. The mean operation time was 68.5 min ( ranging 45-115 min). The mean submucosal tunneling length was 9.5 cm ( ranging 8-13 cm). The average length of endoscopic myotomy of inner circular muscle was 8.5cm ( ranging 7-11 cm). No severe complications related to POEM occurred. Patients were followed up for 1-4 months ( mean 2. 5 months). Dysphagia was relieved significantly during the follow-up in 7 patients. But dysphagia and vomiting re-occurred in one patient 15 days after the operation. Endoscopy revealed a submucosal fistula, which was managed by incision. Conclusion As a new minimally invasive therapy for AC, POEM is very effective to relieve dysphagia in a short term. However, further observation is needed to evaluate long-term efficacy and complications.