To circumvent the long-term effects of papillary ablation for extracting common bile duct stones (< 12 mm in diameter) in endoscopic sphincterotomy (EST), endoscopic papillary dilation (EPD) was attempted in 20 patients. To evaluate papillary function before and after the procedures, manometry of the sphincter of Oddi was carried out in 13 with EPD and 10 of 20 patients with EST. Extraction of all stones was successful (100%) in both groups at an equal rate. Repeated numbers of procedures were common in both groups. However, the mean duration of the procedure was high in EPD compared to EST (63 min vs 42 min, P < NS). Adjunctive therapies like mechanical lithotripsy (ML), nasobiliary drainage, and choledochoscopy were included in EPD, while EST required a basket catheter and ML. There was no significant difference on manometry before and after the procedures (P = NS), although papillary function was found to have decreased after the EPD. In contrast, all patients in the EST group lost papillary function after the procedure. Thirty-day morbidity and mortality rate were absent in both groups. Immediate and 2.5-year follow up complications were uncommon in both groups. As a simple method, EPD may be an effective and safe alternative to EST in the management of patients with bile duct stones who require maintenance of papillary function.

Placement of the stent above the intact sphincter of Oddi was associated with longer stent patency and lower occlusion rate.

Closure of post-endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) duodenal artificial ulcer is not common in the clinical setting. We consider that post-ESD ulcer closure by an over-the-scope-clip (OTSC) method is one of the most effective ways to prevent delayed perforation. We report here two cases of mucosal duodenal cancer in a 65-year-old woman and in a 78-year-old man. Pathological examinations of the resected specimens revealed well-differentiated adenocarcinomas. In these two clinical cases, we successfully carried out complete closures of post-ESD duodenal ulcer using OTSC without any complications.

Although further studies with a large number of patients are needed, our results suggest that with recent improvements of the brushing technique, pancreatic duct brushing is a useful and safe method for the differential diagnosis of malignancy from benign diseases of the pancreas.

For the treatment of acute cholecystitis that does not react to conservative therapies, PTGBA is a safe, simple, and effective treatment modality that can be performed at bedside without any severe complications.