Antral mucosal perfusion is not increased in GAVE.

OBJECTIVES: Although a common cause of intestinal blood loss, the pathophysiology of gastric antral vascular ectasia (GAVE) is not well understood. We aimed to evaluate gastric antral and body mucosal flow in GAVE patients compared to a control population using laser Doppler flowmetry. METHODS: 27 patients with GAVE and 11 control patients without GAVE were evaluated using an endoscopic LDF probe. The probe was placed in the gastric antrum and body in order to calculate standardized mucosal flow rates recorded as perfusion units (PU). RESULTS: Despite its hyperemic appearance and propensity to bleed, antral blood flow was not increased in GAVE: 115.5 PU (IQR: [94.4, 135.9 PU]) in GAVE versus 123.7 PU (IQR: [109.7, 186.5 PU]) in controls. There was a significant gradient between the gastric body and antral blood flow in GAVE (p < 0.001) that was not evident in controls. CONCLUSION: These results indicate that antral mucosal blood flow is not increased in GAVE despite its grossly hyperemic appearance. A mild but statistically significant gradient was noted between the gastric antrum and body in patients with GAVE compared to controls. The pathophysiological significance of this finding is uncertain.

Clinical Characterization of Gastric Antral Vascular Ectasia: A Potential Manifestation of the Metabolic Syndrome.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Gastric antral vascular ectasia is a relatively common endoscopic finding. Past studies have shown an association of gastric antral vascular ectasia with cirrhosis and autoimmune disorders. We aimed to re-examine these associations and to investigate a possible association of gastric antral vascular ectasia with features of the metabolic syndrome. METHODS: There were 135 patients with a diagnosis of gastric antral vascular ectasia from years 1995-2013 seen at the University of Virginia who were identified from a clinical data repository and age and sex matched to a cohort of patients without gastric antral vascular ectasia undergoing endoscopy within the same time frame as the index cases. The groups were compared for comorbidities including autoimmune disease, cirrhosis, vascular disease, body mass index (BMI), diabetes mellitus, and cirrhosis due to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. RESULTS: Sixty-four percent of gastric antral vascular ectasia patients were cirrhotic, compared with 14% of controls (P <.001). Vascular disease was more common in the gastric antral vascular ectasia cohort (57% vs 36%; P <.001). The mean BMI was also higher in the gastric antral vascular ectasia cohort (33.7 kg/m2 vs 28.8 kg/m2; P <.001). Diabetes mellitus and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis cirrhosis were more frequently observed in gastric antral vascular ectasia subjects (64% vs 29% in controls [P <.001] and 28% vs 2% [P <.001], respectively). There was not an increased prevalence of autoimmune disease in gastric antral vascular ectasia patients vs controls (15% vs 13%; P = .861). CONCLUSION: These results confirm the association of gastric antral vascular ectasia with underlying cirrhosis and revealed a significant correlation of gastric antral vascular ectasia with features of metabolic syndrome such as diabetes, BMI, vascular disease, and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis cirrhosis. The pathophysiology of gastric antral vascular ectasia remains uncertain, but we speculate that it may be a manifestation of the metabolic syndrome.

Accuracy of endoscopic ultrasound in the diagnosis of T2N0 esophageal cancer.

BACKGROUND: Accurate staging of esophageal carcinoma (EC) is important since it directs further management. Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) is the best tool available in the locoregional staging of EC; however, differentiating depth of tumor invasion (T) and nodal involvement (N) can be challenging. Accurate staging is particularly important to differentiate T1-2 N0 cancers, which can proceed directly to surgical resection versus TXN1 or T3N0/1 cancers, which benefit from induction chemoradiation prior to surgery. We report the accuracy of EUS staging for cT2N0 lesions. PATIENTS AND INTERVENTIONS: Six hundred six patients underwent EUS for staging of EC between October 2003 and February 2013 by a single interventional endoscopist specially trained in endoscopic ultrasound. Thirty-eight patients were diagnosed with T2N0 tumors and underwent surgical resection without preoperative chemoradiation. EUS staging was compared to surgical pathology to evaluate accuracy. Patient follow-up was obtained from a retrospective chart review. RESULTS: Thirty-eight patients (34 men, mean age 65.8 ± 10.5 years) with cT2N0 tumors by EUS underwent surgical resection of EC without chemoradiation after a mean of 22.4 ± 13.7 days post-EUS. When compared with final pathologic outcomes, 12 (32%) were understaged by EUS and 18 (47%) were overstaged. Understaging occurred due to tumor depth (T) in two patients (17%), nodal disease (N) in six (50%), and both in four (33%). Overstaging occurred due to pathology consistent with pT1b tumors instead of T2 tumors in all 17 cases. Based on EUS, 74% were referred for appropriate therapy. CONCLUSION: While EUS is highly accurate in staging EC, it is less accurate in staging tumors which are not on either ends of the spectrum (mucosally based or clearly transmural). In this challenging group of patients, EUS understaged EC in 32% of cases resulting in surgical resection when neoadjuvant chemoradiation may have been beneficial. We suspect that newer generation EUS systems, which provide better imaging, will result in improved accuracy in staging this group of patients.

Coil migration after transarterial coil embolization of a splenic artery pseudoaneurysm.

A 48-year-old man with a history of splenic artery pseudoaneurysm requiring transarterial embolization 3 months earlier presented to the emergency department with abdominal pain and fever. Computed tomography showed evidence of embolization coil fragments within the gastrointestinal tract. Upper endoscopy showed a large gastric ulcer with numerous embolization coils extruding into the gastric lumen. The patient underwent partial gastrectomy, distal pancreatectomy and resection of the splenic artery pseudoaneurysm. This case illustrates a rare delayed complication of transarterial embolization of a splenic artery pseudoaneurysm.

Percutaneous gastrostomy tube placement to perform transgastrostomy endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreaticography in patients with Roux-en-Y anatomy.

BACKGROUND: Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery is one of the most commonly performed bariatric surgeries in the United States. Patients with prior RYGB are not amenable to conventional endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreaticography (ERCP). Surgical gastrostomy (SG) tube placement enables transgastrostomy ERCP (TG-ERCP). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eleven patients with RYGB anatomy received open Stamm gastrostomy after which the tract was then allowed to mature for an average of 45 days before therapeutic TG-ERCP. The success rate and procedure-related complications of both gastrostomy and ERCP were assessed. RESULTS: TG-ERCP was performed on eleven patients (median age 52 years, range 37-61 years) with prior RYGB and pancreatobiliary diseases. Indications for ERCP in these patients included suspected gallstone pancreatitis (n = 4), ampullary/biliary strictures (n = 5), pancreas divisum (n = 1), and common bile duct clipping as a result of RYGB surgery (n = 1). Two individuals developed post surgical complications with stomal-related infections. TG-ERCP with therapeutic intervention was successfully performed in all patients. Intervention included stone extractions (n = 11), biliary stricture dilation (n = 11), biliary sphincterotomy (n = 11), biliary (n = 3) and pancreatic (n = 1) stent placement, ampullary biopsies (n = 3), choledochoscopy (n = 1), and pseudocyst drainage (n = 1). Complications included post-ERCP pancreatitis (n = 2), post-sphincterotomy bleeding (n = 1), gastrostomy site bleed (n = 1), and gastric perforation (n = 1). The total number of ERCP sessions for the eleven patients was 15 (1 or 2 per patient). Median follow-up was 42 days (range 7-123 days). CONCLUSION: Surgical open gastrostomy followed by TG-ERCP enables therapeutic intervention but is associated with significant complications.

Endoscopic palliation for pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic cancer is devastating due to its poor prognosis. Patients require a multidisciplinary approach to guide available options, mostly palliative because of advanced disease at presentation. Palliation including relief of biliary obstruction, gastric outlet obstruction, and cancer-related pain has become the focus in patients whose cancer is determined to be unresectable. Endoscopic stenting for biliary obstruction is an option for drainage to avoid the complications including jaundice, pruritus, infection, liver dysfunction and eventually failure. Enteral stents can relieve gastric obstruction and allow patients to resume oral intake. Pain is difficult to treat in cancer patients and endoscopic procedures such as pancreatic stenting and celiac plexus neurolysis can provide relief. The objective of endoscopic palliation is to primarily address symptoms as well improve quality of life.