Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) has been widely accepted as a curative treatment for gastric neoplasm. Pyloric stenosis is a chronic complication that can be caused by ESD. The aim of this study is to clarify the risk factors and management for pyloric stenosis. From January 2004 to January 2014, a total of 126 patients who underwent ESD adjacent to pylorus were reviewed retrospectively. Pyloric mucosal defect was defined as when any resection margin of ESD was involved in the pyloric ring. Pyloric stenosis was defined as when a conventional endoscope could not be passed to the duodenum. Among the 126 patients, pyloric stenosis was identified in 9. In a univariate analysis, pyloric stenosis was more common in older patients (P < 0.05) and in lesions with resections over 75% of the pyloric ring circumference (P < 0.001). In a multivariate analysis, the factor that was associated with pyloric stenosis was the extent of the pyloric ring dissection (P < 0.001). Four of the 9 patients with pyloric stenosis had mild dyspepsia, and the others had gastric outlet obstruction symptoms. The 5 symptomatic patients underwent endoscopic balloon dilation (EBD), and the frequency of EBD was 1 to 8 times. The asymptomatic patients were treated conservatively. The incidence of pyloric stenosis was higher in lesions with resections over 75% of the pyloric ring circumference. Although EBD was an effective treatment for pyloric stenosis, conservative management was also helpful in patients who had mild symptoms.

Background/AimsEndoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) has become accepted as a minimally invasive treatment for gastric neoplasms. However, the development of synchronous or metachronous gastric lesions after endoscopic resection has become a major problem. We investigated the characteristics of multiple gastric neoplasms in patients with early gastric cancer (EGC) or gastric adenoma after ESD.MethodsIn total, 512 patients with EGC or gastric adenoma who had undergone ESD between January 2008 and December 2011 participated in this study. The incidence of and factors associated with synchronous and metachronous gastric tumors were investigated in this retrospective study.ResultsIn total, 66 patients (12.9%) had synchronous lesions, and 13 patients (2.5%) had metachronous lesions. Older (> 65 years) subjects had an increased risk of multiple gastric neoplasms (p = 0.012). About two-thirds of the multiple lesions were similar in macroscopic and histological type to the primary lesions. The median interval from the initial lesions to the diagnosis of metachronous lesions was 31 months. The annual incidence rate of metachronous lesions was approximately 3%.ConclusionsWe recommend careful follow-up in patients of advanced age (> 65 years) after initial ESD because multiple lesions could be detected in the remnant stomach. Annual surveillance might aid in the detection of metachronous lesions. Large-scale, multicenter, and longer prospective studies of appropriate surveillance programs are needed.

Background/aims This study aimed to investigate the factors associated with prolonged hospital stay and in-hospital mortality in patients with pyogenic liver abscess. Methods We retrospectively reviewed data from patients with pyogenic liver abscess who were admitted between 2005 and 2018 at three tertiary hospitals in Jeonbuk province, South Korea. Prolonged hospital stay was defined as a duration of hospital admission of more than 21 days. Results A total of 648 patients (406 men and 242 women) diagnosed with pyogenic liver abscess were enrolled in the study. The mean maximal diameter of the liver abscess was 5.4 ± 2.6 cm, and 74.9% of the lesions were single. The three groups were divided according to the maximal diameter of the abscess. Laboratory parameters indicated a more severe inflammatory state and higher incidence of complications and extrahepatic manifestations with increasing abscess size. Rates of percutaneous catheter drainage (PCD) insertion, multiple PCD drainage, and salvage procedures as well as duration of drainage were also higher in the large liver abscess group. Of note, the duration of hospitalization and in-hospital mortality were significantly higher in the large hepatic abscess group. A multivariate analysis revealed that underlying diabetes mellitus, hypoalbuminemia, high baseline high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and procalcitonin levels, and large maximal abscess diameter were independent factors associated with prolonged hospital stay. Regarding in-hospital mortality, acute kidney injury at admission and maximal diameter of the abscess were independent factors associated with in-hospital mortality. Conclusions A large maximal diameter of the liver abscess at admission indicated prolonged hospitalization and poor prognosis. More aggressive treatment strategies with careful monitoring are warranted in patients with large liver abscesses.

Age ≥40 years, female gender, HBsAg positivity, peak PT (INR) ≥1.5, and peak total bilirubin were significant risk factors for severe complications in acute HAV infections.

PurposeThe endoscopic management of a fully covered self-expandable metal stent (SEMS) has been suggested for the primary treatment of patients with anastomotic leaks after total gastrectomy. Embedded stents due to tissue ingrowth and migration are the main obstacles in endoscopic stent management.Materials and MethodsThe effectiveness and safety of endoscopic management were evaluated for anastomotic leaks when using a benign fully covered SEMS with an anchoring thread and thick silicone covering the membrane to prevent stent embedding and migration. We retrospectively reviewed the data of 14 consecutive patients with gastric cancer and anastomotic leaks after total gastrectomy treated from January 2009 to December 2016.ResultsThe technical success rate of endoscopic stent replacement was 100%, and the rate of complete leaks closure was 85.7% (n=12). The mean size of leaks was 13.1 mm (range, 3–30 mm). The time interval from operation to stent replacement was 10.7 days (range, 3–35 days) and the interval from stent replacement to extraction was 32.3 days (range, 18–49 days). The complication rate was 14.1%, and included a single jejunal ulcer and delayed stricture at the site of leakage. No embedded stent or migration occurred. Two patients died due to progression of pneumonia and septic shock 2 weeks after stent replacement.ConclusionsA benign fully covered SEMS with an anchoring thread and thick membrane is an effective and safe stent in patients with anastomotic leaks after total gastrectomy. The novelty of this stent is that it provides complete prevention of stent migration and embedding, compared with conventional fully covered SEMS.

Constipation is well known to be a frequent symptom in idiopathic Parkinson’s disease. In this study, colonic transit time was measured in 16 patients with nonidiopathic Parkinson’s syndrome (non-IPS). These patients all had lacunar infarcts in the caudate, putamen, or globus pallidus, as a cause of the disease, as demonstrated by MRI. In comparison with the control group there was only a slightly longer transit time with, on the whole, a normal transit time (about 59 h). In only five cases was the transit time significantly decreased. Our results suggest that colonic transit is only prolonged in patients with idiopathic PD, whereas it is normal in non-IPS. This seems to be cause by a multi-degenerative process in the idiopathic disease.

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Endoscopic resection of over 3/4 of the lumen of the antrum or pylorus is a known risk factor for post-endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) stenosis. Local or systemic steroids may reduce the risk of stenosis, but their overall role in stenosis prevention remains controversial. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of prophylactic gastric open peroral endoscopic myotomy (GO-POEM) in preventing post-ESD stenosis. Methods: Ten patients who underwent GO-POEM during or immediately after ESD in the Presbyterian Medical Center between June 2017 and November 2020 were included. All patients underwent excision of over 3/4 of the lumen of the antrum or pylorus. GO-POEM was performed without submucosal tunneling.Results: Well-differentiated tubular adenocarcinoma, tubulovillous adenoma with high-grade dysplasia, and tubular adenoma with low-grade dysplasia were diagnosed in three, one, and six patients, respectively. GO-POEM was performed successfully in all the 10 patients. Stenosis could not be evaluated in one patient, whereas one of the remaining nine patients developed post-ESD stenosis. GO-POEM decreased the risk of post-ESD stenosis in the other eight patients. Two patients presented with intraprocedural bleeding, both of whom were managed endoscopically successfully.Conclusions: Prophylactic GO-POEM may be a novel, effective and safe treatment modality for preventing post-ESD stenosis in the stomach. Well-designed, multicenter studies with large sample sizes are needed to confirm our results.