Racial disparities in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) utilization in the United States: are we getting better?

Clinical outcomes and predictors for 30‐day readmissions of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography in the United States

“…Between 2007 and 2018, a national US-based study reported a decline in inpatient mortality for ERCP from 1.56% to 1.46% without a statistically significant trend, with an overall mortality rate of 1.37% for the study period. 4 With respect to death at 30 days of ERCP, a study in the United Kingdom from 2006 to 2008 which evaluated 40 938 patients noted that the 30-day all-cause mortality rate was 5.3% (2.4% for non-cancer cases). 30 Furthermore, the authors identified older age, male sex, emergency admission, cancer, and non-cancer comorbidities as predictors of mortality.…”

“…2,3 It involves the utilization of a side-viewing endoscope under fluoroscopic guidance to perform a wide variety of therapeutic interventions. 4 This is in stark contrast to conventional open-surgical interventions that were once considered the standard of care and are associated with higher morbidity, mortality, and complications. Improving endoscopic techniques, innovation of new equipment, and increasing operator experience ensure that ERCP can be performed safely with a high degree of technical success, particularly in patients with a high comorbidity burden.…”

“…Improving endoscopic techniques, innovation of new equipment, and increasing operator experience ensure that ERCP can be performed safely with a high degree of technical success, particularly in patients with a high comorbidity burden. 4,5 However, like any procedure, ERCP is also associated with procedure-specific complications with rates as high as 4-12%. 6,7 Post-ERCP pancreatitis is one of the most common serious complications of ERCP with an incidence rate ranging from 1% to 10%, while other complications include post-ERCP hemorrhage, bowel perforation, and post-ERCP cholangitis.…”

“…Initially utilized as a diagnostic procedure, it has evolved over the years to become a purely therapeutic procedure, advancing the quality of care for pancreaticobiliary disease across the globe 2,3 . It involves the utilization of a side‐viewing endoscope under fluoroscopic guidance to perform a wide variety of therapeutic interventions 4 . This is in stark contrast to conventional open‐surgical interventions that were once considered the standard of care and are associated with higher morbidity, mortality, and complications.…”

“…This is in stark contrast to conventional open‐surgical interventions that were once considered the standard of care and are associated with higher morbidity, mortality, and complications. Improving endoscopic techniques, innovation of new equipment, and increasing operator experience ensure that ERCP can be performed safely with a high degree of technical success, particularly in patients with a high comorbidity burden 4,5 . However, like any procedure, ERCP is also associated with procedure‐specific complications with rates as high as 4–12% 6,7 .…”