Occult intestinal haemorrhage due to lipoma of the small bowel detected with the combined use of the new endoscopic techniques. A report of two cases

Confluent Small Bowel Lipomatosis: A Rare Cause of Recurrent Abdominal Pain

Small intestine lipomatosis is rare but may be associated with pain, intussusception, and gastrointestinal bleeding. In this report, we examine the case of a 41-year-old man who had recurrent presentations to the emergency department with non-specific abdominal pain. Preoperative imaging suggested extensive infiltration of small intestine with macroscopic fat. At surgery, extensive and confluent small bowel lipomatosis were seen. The affected ileal segment was resected, and the patient remained symptom-free after surgery. Abdominal lipomatosis is a rare condition which can be completely treated by resection of the affected gut segment but is often unsuspected and difficult to diagnose. In this report, we describe a case with the most extensive lipomatosis on record with more than 70 cm of gut with confluent lipomatosis. Magnetic resonance Enterography (MRE) is a useful non-invasive diagnostic modality, although laparoscopy/laparotomy may be necessary for assessment of the extent of disease. Symptomatic cases should be treated with segmental small bowel resection, which is curative.

Balloon-assisted endoscopic submucosal dissection for treating small intestinal lipomas: Report of two cases

BACKGROUND

Most small intestinal lipomas are treated surgically, and some require repeated surgeries for multiple lipomas. However, application of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) technology in the deep small intestine is rarely reported owing to the special anatomical structure of the small intestine, medical equipment limitations, and the lack of relevant experience among endoscopists.

CASE SUMMARY

Two patients with small intestinal lipomas treated at the Air Force Medical Center from November 2015 to September 2019 were selected to undergo balloon-assisted ESD to treat the lipomas and explore the technical feasibility and safety of ESD for treating small intestinal lipomas. The two patients successfully underwent balloon-assisted ESD to treat four small intestinal lipomas, with a complete resection rate of 100% (4/4), without intraoperative or postoperative bleeding, perforation, or other complications. After 3-6 mo of postoperative follow-up, the clinical symptoms caused by the lipomas were significantly relieved or disappeared after treatment.

CONCLUSION

Balloon-assisted ESD is a safe and reliable new method for treating deep intestinal lipomas and shows good clinical feasibility.

Successful Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection of a Large Terminal Ileal Lipoma

A 78-year-old woman who had recurrent right lower abdominal pain for about 1 year underwent computed tomography (CT) because of a follow-up observation 1 year after right breast cancer surgery. CT revealed a tumor in the colon. The patient was referred to our hospital for detailed examinations. An abdominal CT showed a low-density tumor of approximately 30 mm in the ascending colon, and the CT density inside the tumor was same as that of fatty tissues. A subsequent colonoscopy showed a submucosal tumor (SMT) in the proximal ascending colon developing from the terminal ileum. A colonoscopic ultrasonography revealed that the SMT was a high-echoic mass mainly localized in the submucosal layer. Based on the findings from CT, colonoscopy, and colonoscopic ultrasonography, the SMT was diagnosed as a pedunculated lipoma originating from the terminal ileum and treated with endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) because of recurrent abdominal pain. The 40-mm tumor was resected en bloc without complications. ESD may be more appropriate than polypectomy and surgery for removal of small intestinal tumors, because ESD allows direct visualization of the cutting line and exactly dissects the submucosal layers without damaging the muscular layers. ESD is a potentially useful treatment to remove intestinal lipomas.

Lipoma of the small intestine treated with endoscopic resection

We report a case of lipoma of the small intestine that was treated by endoscopic resection. A 79-year-old man who complained of tarry stool was diagnosed as having jejunal tumor at a neighboring clinic. Computed tomography (CT) and enteroscopy demonstrated an ulcerating jejunal mass. Because the tumor was considered to be the source of bleeding, we removed it under double-balloon endoscopy with a SB knife without any procedure-related complications. Histological examination revealed that the tumor was composed of mature adipose tissue, compatible with lipoma. SB knife, a scissors-type device for submucosal dissection, may be more appropriate than snare polypectomy for removal of small bowel tumors, because it can control bleeding readily and satisfactorily. Our experience suggests that submucosal dissection may be an appropriate procedure for removal of lipomas of the intestine. Endoscopic resection with SB knife and double-balloon endoscopy is a potential option to avoid surgical resection in the management of tumors of the small intestine.