Feasibility of using wire-guided needle-knife electrocautery for refractory biliary and pancreatic strictures

Therapeutic Endoscopy in Postoperative Pouch Complications

Ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) or "J"-pouch as it is commonly referred to, is the treatment of choice in patients with medically refractory ulcerative colitis. IPAA can have infectious, inflammatory, and mechanical complications. Currently, there are no Food and Drug Administration-approved medical therapies for these complications. Surgery that may be eventually required can have significant morbidities due to the complexity of IPAA. Endoscopy is fast emerging as a leading modality of treatment for some of these pouch complications. Endoscopy in adjunct with medical treatment can help manage the majority of pouch-related disorders and improve the outcome.

Technical feasibility and safety of transluminal antegrade dilation for hepaticojejunostomy stricture using a novel fine-gauge electrocautery dilator (with video)

Background and study aims  A novel fine-gauge electrocautery dilator (ED) has recently become available in Japan. The current study evaluated the safety and feasibility of transluminal antegrade dilation for hepaticojejunal stricture (HJS) using this novel ED. Patients and methods  Patients who with complicated HJS were retrospectively enrolled. The primary and secondary endpoints of this study were rates of technical success defined as functional antegrade HJS dilation using the novel ED and types of adverse events, respectively. A total of 22 patients were enrolled. Among them, six were treated using an enteroscopic approach due to the absence of bile duct dilation or patient refusal to undergo EUS-HGS. Therefore, 16 patients underwent EUS-HGS. Results  The procedure was successful in 15 of 16 patients (93.8 %). The contrast medium flowed from the intrahepatic bile duct to the intestine of 14 of 15 patients (93.3 %). The resolution rate of HJS was 13 of 14 (92.9 %) at 6 months. Conclusion  Our technique might offer a new option with which to treat HJS, although a prospective study with long-term follow-up is needed.

Endoscopic treatment of pouch inlet and afferent limb strictures: stricturotomy vs. balloon dilation

BACKGROUND

Strictures are common complications after ileal pouch surgery. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of endoscopic stricturotomy vs. endoscopic balloon dilation (EBD) in the treatment of pouch inlet strictures.

METHODS

All consecutive ulcerative colitis patients with the diagnosis of pouch inlet or afferent limb strictures treated in our Interventional Inflammatory Bowel Disease Unit (i-IBD) from 2008 to 2017 were extracted. The primary outcomes were surgery-free survival and post-procedural complications.

RESULTS

A total of 200 eligible patients were included in this study, with 40 (20.0%) patients treated with endoscopic stricturotomy and 160 (80.0%) patients treated with EBD. Symptom improvement was recorded in 11 (42.3%) patients treated with endoscopic stricturotomy and 16 (13.2%) treated with EBD. Subsequent surgery rate was comparable between the two groups (9 [22.5%] vs. 33 [20.6%], P = 0.80) during a median follow-up of 0.6 years (interquartile range [IQR] 0.4-0.8) vs. 3.6 years (IQR 1.1-6.2) in patients receiving endoscopic stricturotomy and EBD, respectively. The overall surgery-free survival seems to be comparable as well (P = 0.12). None of the patients in the stricturotomy group developed pouch failure, while 9 patients (5.6%) had pouch failure in the balloon dilation group (P = 0.17). Procedural bleeding was seen in three occasions (4.7% per procedure) in patients receiving endoscopic stricturotomy and perforation was seen in three occasions (0.8% per procedure) in patients receiving EBD (P = 0.02). In multivariable analysis, an increased length of the stricture (hazard ratio [HR] 1.4, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.0-1.8) and concurrent pouchitis (HR 2.5, 95% CI 1.0-5.7) were found to be risk factors for the requirement of surgery.

CONCLUSION

Endoscopic stricturotomy and EBD were both effective in treating patients with pouch inlet or afferent limb strictures, EBD had a higher perforation risk while endoscopic stricturotomy had a higher bleeding risk.

Endoscopic stricturotomy and ileo-colonic resection in patients with primary Crohn's disease-related distal ileum strictures

Background

Stricture is a common presentation of Crohn’s disease with the site of prevalence being the distal ileum. This study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of patients with primary distal ileum stricture treated with endoscopic stricturotomy (ESt) vs ileo-colonic resection (ICR).

Methods

All consecutive patients with primary distal ileum stricture that were treated with ESt and/or ICR were extracted from the interventional inflammatory bowel disease (i-IBD) unit from 2001 to 2016. All patients with a stricture >5 cm or those with anastomotic strictures were excluded from the study. The primary outcomes were surgery-free survival and post-procedural complications.

Results

A total of 13 patients receiving ESt and 32 patients receiving ICR were included in this study. Although the length of the stricture is comparable between the two groups (2.4 ± 0.9 vs 3.0 ± 1.1 cm, P = 0.17), patients who received surgery had a more complicated obstruction presented by the high pre-stenosis proximal dilation rate (67.7% vs 9.1%, P = 0.001). All patients in both groups achieved immediate technical success after treatment. The median follow-up durations were 1.8 and 1.5 years in the ESt and ICR groups, respectively. The subsequent surgery rates were similar between the two groups (15.4% vs 18.8%, P = 0.79) and the overall surgery-free survival was also comparable between the two groups (P = 0.98). Post-procedural adverse events were seen in 2/29 ESt procedures (6.9% per procedure) and 8/32 (25.0%) patients receiving ICR (P = 0.05).

Conclusions

ESt achieved comparable stricture-related surgery-free survival as ICR, while ESt had a numerically lower post-operative complication rate.

Endoscopic stricturotomy in the treatment of anastomotic strictures in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and non-IBD patients

Backgrounds

Endoscopic stricturotomy (ESt) has been shown to be effective in treating inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)-associated anastomotic strictures. However, the outcome of ESt in benign, non-IBD conditions has not been described. The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcome of ESt in the management of IBD and non-IBD-associated strictures.

Methods

Data of all consecutive IBD and non-IBD patients with benign anastomotic strictures treated with ESt from 2009 to 2016 were extracted. The primary outcomes were surgery-free survival and procedure-related complications.

Results

A total of 49 IBD and 15 non-IBD patients were included in this study. The IBD group included 25 patients with Crohn’s disease and 24 with ulcerative colitis and ileal pouches. Underlying diseases in the non-IBD group included colorectal cancer (n = 7), diverticulitis (n = 5), large bowel prolapse (n = 2), and constipation (n = 1). Immediate technical success was achieved in all patients in both groups. Bleeding complications occurred on five occasions (4.7% per procedure) in the IBD group, while no complication occurred in the non-IBD group (P = 0.20). Stricture improvement on follow-up endoscopy was found in 10 (20.4%) and 5 (33.3%) patients in the IBD and non-IBD groups, respectively (P = 0.32). Six (12.2%) patients in the IBD group and four (26.7%) patients in the non-IBD group eventually required stricture-related surgery (P = 0.23). IBD patients appeared to have a higher tendency for maintaining surgery-free after the procedure than non-IBD patients (P = 0.08).

Conclusions

Endoscopic stricturotomy was shown to have comparable outcomes, though non-IBD patients seem to have a higher need for subsequent surgery but a lower complication rate than IBD patients.

Endoscopic stricturotomy versus ileocolonic resection in the treatment of ileocolonic anastomotic strictures in Crohn's disease

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Endoscopic stricturotomy (ESt) is a novel technique in the treatment of anastomotic strictures in Crohn's disease (CD). The aim of this study was to compare the outcome of patients with ileocolonic anastomotic stricture treated with ESt versus ileocolonic resection (ICR).

METHODS

This historical cohort study included consecutive CD patients with ileocolonic anastomotic stricture treated with ESt or ICR from 2010 to 2017. The primary outcomes were surgery-free survival and postprocedural adverse events.

RESULTS

Thirty-five patients treated with ESt and 147 patients treated with ICR were analyzed. Median follow-up was .8 years (interquartile range [IQR], .2-1.7) and 2.2 years (IQR, 1.2-4.4) in the ESt and ICR groups, respectively (P < .001). Subsequent stricture-related surgery was needed in 4 patients (11.3%) receiving ESt and in 15 patients (10.2%) receiving ICR (P = .83). Kaplan-Meier analysis also showed no statistical difference regarding surgery-free survival between the 2 groups (P = .24). Procedure-related major adverse events were documented in 5 of 49 patients (10.2% per procedure) undergoing ESt and 47 patients (31.9%) undergoing ICR (P = .003). Risk factors for decreased surgery-free survival on multivariate analysis included preprocedural corticosteroids (hazard ratio [HR], 2.8; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.0-8.1), multiple strictures (HR, 4.9; 95% CI, 1.7-14.2), and increased disease-related hospitalizations (HR, 4.0; 95% CI, 1.2-13.0).

CONCLUSIONS

With the limitation of a shorter follow-up, ESt achieved comparable surgery-free survival with a decreased morbidity when compared with ICR.

Endoscopic dissection of refractory pancreatic duct stricture via accessory pancreatic duct approach for concurrent treatment of anomalous pancreaticobiliary junction in aging patients

Background

Although endoscopic management of pancreatic strictures by dilation and stenting is well established, some high-grade strictures are refractory to conventional methods. Here, we report a novel technique via accessory pancreatic duct (APD) approach to simultaneously release chronic pancreatitis-associated pancreatic stricture and correct anomalous pancreaticobiliary junction (APBJ). Due to APBJ and stricture of proximal main pancreatic duct, the APD turned out to be compensatory expansion. The stiff stenosis was dissected along the axial of APD using needle-knife electrocautery or holmium laser ablation, and then the supporting stent was placed into the pancreatic body duct. By doing so, the outflow channels of pancreatic and biliary ducts were exquisitely separated.

Patients and methods

Two patients aged 69 and 71 years underwent stricture dissection and stent insertion for fluent drainage of pancreatic juice. The postoperative course was marked by complete abdominal pain relief and normal blood amylase recovery. In the first patient, wire-guided needle-knife electrocautery under fluoroscopic control was applied to release refractory stricture. The second patient was treated by SpyGlass pancreatoscopy-guided holmium laser ablation to lift pancreatic stricture.

Results

Plastic stents in APD were removed at 3 months after surgery, and magnetic resonance imaging at 6 months showed strictly normal aspect of the pancreatic duct.

Conclusion

Although both cases were successful without severe complications, we recommend this approach only for selected patients with short refractory pancreatic strictures due to chronic pancreatitis. In order to prevent severe complications (bleeding, perforation or pancreatitis), direct-view endoscopy-guided electrotomy needs to be developed.

Endoscopic management of difficult benign biliary and pancreatic strictures using a wire-guided cystotome: experience with 25 cases

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS

Endoscopic management using standard accessories is the preferred modality for treatment of benign biliary strictures. However, with difficult strictures, there is frequently failure of endoscopic therapy. We are reporting our experience regarding use of a standard diathermic dilator (cystotome) to aid in stricture dilatation and stent placement in patients with difficult strictures.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Data were analyzed from January 2014 to January 2017 at a single tertiary care center in North India. Total 25 patients were included.

RESULTS

The mean age was 45 years (varying from 38 - 55 years). Of the 25 patients with difficult strictures, 14 (56 %) were male and 11 (44 %) were female. Further, of these, 19 had biliary and 6 had pancreatic strictures. The average time of diathermic current application was 3.5 seconds (ranging 3 - 5 seconds). Technical and clinical success were achieved in 100 % of cases. None of the patients had any procedure-related (early or delayed) major complications.

CONCLUSION

The cystotome is an extremely safe and useful accessory in benign biliary and pancreatic strictures, whereas conventional methods to negotiate stricture have failed.

Endoscopic Stricturotomy Versus Balloon Dilation in the Treatment of Anastomotic Strictures in Crohn's Disease

BACKGROUND

Current treatment modalities for anastomotic stricture in Crohn's disease (CD) include endoscopic balloon dilation (EBD) and surgery. We recently published a case series of inflammatory bowel disease patients treated with the novel endoscopic stricturotomy (ES). The aim of this case-control study was to compare the efficacy and safety of ES versus conventional EBD in the treatment of anastomotic strictures in CD patients.

METHODS

All eligible patients with CD anastomotic stricture who were treated with ES or EBD were included. The primary outcomes were surgery-free survival and post-procedural complications.

RESULTS

A total of 185 patients were studied, including 21 treated with ES since 2009, and 164 treated with EBD since 1998. The immediate technical success after therapy was achieved in 100% of patients treated with ES and 89.5% of patients with EBD. Symptomatic and endoscopic improvement rates were higher in those treated with ES than EBD. Subsequent surgery was needed in 2 (9.5%) patients with ES and 55 (33.5%) with EBD (P = 0.03), during a median of 0.8 (interquartile range [IQR]:0.1-1.6) year and 4.0 (IQR: 0.8-6.9) years, respectively. Five procedure-associated perforation (1.1% per procedure) occurred in the EBD group and none in the ES group. In contrast, 4 procedure-associated, transfusion-required bleeding (8.8% per procedure) occurred in the ES group and none in the EBD group.

CONCLUSIONS

ES appears to be more effective in treating CD patients with anastomotic stricture than EBD. Although ES may have a lower risk for perforation, the procedure needs to be perfected to reduce its bleeding risk.

Step-by-step strategy in the management of residual hepatolithiasis using post-operative cholangioscopy

Hepatolithiasis is the presence of calculi within the intrahepatic bile duct specifically located proximal to the confluence of the left and right hepatic ducts. The ultimate goal of hepatolithiasis treatment is the complete removal of the stone, the correction of the associated strictures and the prevention of recurrent cholangitis. Although hepatectomy could effectively achieve the above goals, it can be restricted by the risk of insufficient residual liver volume, and has a 15.6% rate of residual hepatolithiasis. With improvements in minimally invasive surgery, post-operative cholangioscopy (POC), provides an additional option for hepatolithiasis treatment with higher clearance rate and fewer severe complications. POC is very safe, and can be performed repeatedly until full patient benefit is achieved. During POC three main steps are accomplished: first, the analysis of the residual hepatolithiasis distribution indirectly by imaging methods or directly endoscopic observation; second, the establishment of the surgical pathway to relieve the strictures; and third, the removal of the stone by a combination of different techniques such as simple basket extraction, mechanical fragmentation, electrohydraulic lithotripsy or laser lithotripsy, among others. In summary, a step-by-step strategy of POC should be put forward to standardize the procedures, especially when dealing with complicated residual hepatolithiasis. This review briefly summarizes the classification, management and complications of hepatolithiasis during the POC process.

Endoscopic Stricturotomy with Needle Knife in the Treatment of Strictures from Inflammatory Bowel Disease

BACKGROUND

Fibrotic strictures in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are often not amenable to medical therapy. Therapy with endoscopic balloon dilation usually requires frequent repeat treatments. Therefore, we developed the novel needle knife stricturotomy (NKSt) for the treatment of strictures in the patients with IBD. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of NKSt.

METHODS

Data of patients with strictures treated with NKSt in our Interventional IBD Unit at the Cleveland Clinic were extracted from the registry. The primary and secondary outcomes were surgery-free survival and procedure-related complications.

RESULTS

A total of 85 patients were included in this study. Multiple strictures were noticed in 30 (35.3%) patients at inception, giving a total of 127 strictures treated. The median length of the treated strictures was 1.5 cm (interquartile range: 1.0-2.0) and 52 (41.6%) were endoscopically nontraversable. The immediate success with passage of the scope through the stricture after NKSt therapy was achieved in all patients. During the median follow-up of 0.9 years (interquartile range: 0.3-1.8) and a median of 2.0 treatment (interquartile range: 1.0-3.0), 13 (15.3%) patients required stricture-related surgery. There were 77 (60.6%) patients who required additional NKSt, endoscopic balloon dilation, or both after the inception of NKSt. In a total of 272 NKSt procedures performed, 10 (3.7%) adverse events occurred, including 9 with delayed bleeding and one hospitalization due to perforation.

CONCLUSIONS

Endoscopic NKSt is effective and safe for treating the primary and secondary IBD-related strictures, which may provide an alternative for endoscopic balloon dilation and surgical intervention.

Innovations and techniques for balloon-enteroscope-assisted endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography in patients with altered gastrointestinal anatomy

Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) remains challenging in patients who have undergone surgical reconstruction of the intestine. Recently, many studies have reported that balloon-enteroscope-assisted ERCP (BEA-ERCP) is a safe and effective procedure. However, further improvements in outcomes and the development of simplified procedures are required. Percutaneous treatment, Laparoscopy-assisted ERCP, endoscopic ultrasound-guided anterograde intervention, and open surgery are effective treatments. However, treatment should be noninvasive, effective, and safe. We believe that these procedures should be performed only in difficult-to-treat patients because of many potential complications. BEA-ERCP still requires high expertise-level techniques and is far from a routinely performed procedure. Various techniques have been proposed to facilitate scope insertion (insertion with percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTBD) rendezvous technique, Short type single-balloon enteroscopes with passive bending section, Intraluminal injection of indigo carmine, CO₂ inflation guidance), cannulation (PTBD or percutaneous transgallbladder drainage rendezvous technique, Dilation using screw drill, Rendezvous technique combining DBE with a cholangioscope, endoscopic ultrasound-guided rendezvous technique), and treatment (overtube-assisted technique, Short type balloon enteroscopes) during BEA-ERCP. The use of these techniques may allow treatment to be performed by BEA-ERCP in many patients. A standard procedure for ERCP yet to be established for patients with a reconstructed intestine. At present, BEA-ERCP is considered the safest and most effective procedure and is therefore likely to be recommended as first-line treatment. In this article, we discuss the current status of BEA-ERCP in patients with surgically altered gastrointestinal anatomy.