The significance of routine duodenal biopsies in pediatric patients undergoing upper intestinal endoscopy

GOALS: To determine the significance of performing routine duodenal biopsies during upper intestinal endoscopy in a pediatric population and to evaluate their contribution to the overall diagnosis. BACKGROUND: Performing duodenal biopsy during every upper endoscopy regardless of the indication for endoscopy and the macroscopic findings, is a controversial topic. Advocates of performing routine biopsies argue that unexpected pathology such as villous atrophy, may have significant clinical implications. Opponents argue that the yield of performing a biopsy on an apparently normal mucosa is low. STUDY: Duodenal biopsies, routinely taken from 201 pediatric patients during upper endoscopy over a 26-month period were retrospectively reviewed. Duodenal biopsies taken during this period for suspected mucosal lesions were not included in the analysis. Indications for endoscopy included suspected peptic disease, gastroesophageal reflux, unexplained vomiting, abdominal pain, iron deficiency anemia and Crohn disease. RESULTS: Of the 201 sets of biopsies reviewed, 159 (79.1%) were normal, 7 had insufficient material for evaluation and 35 (17.4%) carried abnormalities that included: 10 Giardia lamblia (4.9%), 13 mild chronic inflammation (6.5%), and 8 increased intraepithelial lymphocytes (3.9%). Two biopsies showed mixed acute and chronic inflammation, 1 showed lymphatic dilatation and 1 had a mild mucosal lesion. The risk for microscopic pathology in the duodenum was higher when Helicobacter pylori was present in the gastric biopsy (25.98% vs. 12.16% P < 0.02). The negative predictive value of a normal appearing duodenal mucosa was 81.5%, implying that a normal appearing mucosa does not rule out pathology. No complications were encountered in our series. CONCLUSION: We suggest that the inclusion of routine duodenal biopsies as part of upper endoscopy in pediatric patients should be considered favorably. This practice may yield additional pathologic findings that otherwise could have been missed. It should be done regardless of the indication for endoscopy or the gross appearance of the mucosa. This practice does not increase the risk of the procedure.     

Usefulness of duodenal biopsy during routine upper gastrointestinal endoscopy for diagnosis of celiac disease

AIM: To describe the trend in duodenal biopsy performance during routine upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in an adult Spanish population, and to analyze its value for the diagnosis of celiac disease in clinical practice. METHODS: A 15 year-trend (1990 to 2004) in duodenal biopsy performed when undertaking upper gastrointestinal endoscopy was studied. We analysed the prevalence of celiac disease in the overall group, and in the subgroups with anaemia and/or chronic diarrhoea. RESULTS: Duodenal biopsy was performed in 1033 of 13 678 upper gastrointestinal endoscopies (7.6%); an increase in the use of such was observed over the study period (1.9% in 1990-1994, 5% in 1995-1999 and 12.8% in 2000-2004). Celiac disease was diagnosed in 22 patients (2.2%), this being more frequent in women than in men (3% and 1% respectively). Fourteen out of 514 (2.7%) patients with anaemia, 12 out of 141 (8.5%) with chronic diarrhoea and 8 out of 42 (19%) with anaemia plus chronic diarrhoea had celiac disease. A classical clinical presentation was observed in 55% of the cases, 23% of the patients had associated dermatitis herpetiformis and 64% presented anaemia; 9% were diagnosed by familial screening and 5% by cryptogenetic hypertransaminasaemia. CONCLUSION: Duodenal biopsy undertaken during routine upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in adults, has been gradually incorporated into clinical practice, and is a useful tool for the diagnosis of celiac disease in high risk groups such as those with anaemia and/or chronic diarrhoea.     

Esophageal polyps in pediatric patients undergoing routine diagnostic upper gastrointestinal endoscopy: a multicenter study

Esophageal polyps are uncommon findings in pediatric patients, and reports have been limited to case reports. Esophageal polyps have been previously ascribed to esophagitis secondary to gastroesophageal reflux, medications, infections and recurrent vomiting. They have been associated with underlying conditions such as hiatal hernia, Barrett's esophagus, eosinophilic esophagitis and Crohn's disease. Presenting complaints of children with esophageal polyps have included vomiting, dysphagia, hematemesis and abdominal pain. The aim of this paper is to characterize the incidence, clinical presentation and progression, histologic subtypes and associated mucosal abnormalities in children with esophageal polyps. A retrospective multicenter study was performed at four institutions identifying diagnosis of esophageal polyps in pediatric patients (<21 years). Information was obtained from patient charts, endoscopy reports and histopathology reports. Specimens and slides were examined by experienced pediatric pathologists for all included cases. Esophageal polyps were identified in 13 patients (9 M) from 9438 esophagogastroduodenoscopies (0.14%). Mean age of subjects was 9.2 years. Vomiting was the most common indication for endoscopy. Polyp location was at the gastroesophageal junction in 7 of the 13 cases. Most polyps were inflammatory (n = 7). Esophagitis was noted in 69% of those with esophageal polyps. Repeat endoscopies in six patients at a mean interval of 8 months noted persistence of polyps in all six patients. This paper is the first to characterize esophageal polyps in pediatrics. These polyps are rare in children and often are associated with esophagitis. Presenting complaints seem to vary by age. Polyps did not consistently change with either time or acid suppression. The optimal management strategy has yet to be defined and likely depends on the underlying pathophysiologic process.     

Limited diagnostic value of laryngopharyngeal lesions in patients with gastroesophageal reflux during routine upper gastrointestinal endoscopy

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: There is growing evidence that gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) may cause typical laryngeal/pharyngeal lesions secondary to tissue irritation. The prevalence of those lesions in GERD patients is not well established. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of GERD signs in the laryngopharyngeal area during routine upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. METHODS: Between July 2000 and July 2001, 1,209 patients underwent 1,311 upper gastrointestinal endoscopies and were enrolled in this study. The structured examination of the laryngopharyngeal area during upper gastrointestinal endoscopy was videotaped for review by three gastroenterologists and one otorhinolaryngologist, blinded to the endoscopic esophageal findings. From the 1,209 patients enrolled in this prospective study, all patients (group I, N = 132) with typical endoscopical esophageal findings of GERD (Savary-Miller I-IV) were selected. The sex- and age-matched control group II (N = 132) underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy for different reasons, had no reflux symptoms, and had normal esophagoscopy. RESULTS: In the two groups of patients, we found no difference in the prevalence of abnormal interarytenoid bar findings (32%vs 32%), arytenoid medial wall erythema (47%vs 43%), posterior commissure changes (36%vs 34%), or posterior cricoid wall edema (1%vs 3%). The only difference was noted in the posterior pharyngeal wall cobblestoning (66%vs 50%, P= 0.004). CONCLUSION: The results of this large systematic investigation challenge the diagnostic specificity of laryngopharyngeal findings attributed to gastroesophageal reflux.     

Missed colonic adenomas in routine primary care endoscopy: a prospective tandem colonoscopy study

Colonoscopy is the gold standard in the diagnosis of colorectal neoplasia. Several lines of independent evidence, however, suggest that a significant number of small adenomas and also some advanced lesions are missed even by experienced endoscopists. With large-scale screening colonoscopy programmes installed, information on quality of colonoscopy in primary care is essential, but not available. Between July 2006 and December 2008, a total of 40 patients (23 men and 17 women, median age: 69 years) underwent a second colonoscopy within 42 days after the first endoscopy (median: 11 days), in all cases exclusively for clinical reasons. Index colonoscopy was performed by 14 endoscopists in 6 hospitals and 4 private practices. Data on all consecutive patients were collected prospectively. A total of 98 neoplastic lesions were identified in 34 patients at the index colonoscopy, an additional 53 adenomas were removed at the second colonoscopy, 33 of them smaller than 5 mm. 25 out of 53 missed adenomas were identified between the coecum and the right colonic flexure. 12 of the additional lesions were considered significant lesions (larger than 10 mm or tubulovillous adenoma), nine of these were located between the coecum and the right colonic flexure. In 24 patients repeat colonoscopy detected adenomas not described in the original report. In eight patients a total of 12 significant lesions were removed, nine of these were located between the coecum and the right colonic flexure. About one-third of adenomas were missed in 40 routine colonoscopies, most of them only small and therefore probably of little clinical significance. However, 12 significant lesions were missed in 8 patients. Adenomas in the right colon seem to be a particular problem.     

The clinical benefit of routine upper gastrointestinal endoscopy

In a prospective study including 1526 consecutive endoscopies, attempts were made to characterize the benefit of upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. Before endoscopy judgements were made about the most likely diagnosis and treatment and about the degree of suspicion of upper gastrointestinal malignancy. After endoscopy the same types of judgement were made again. The study showed that about half of the endoscopies disclosed clinically significant abnormalities. Furthermore, about every third endoscopy led to unpredicted diagnostic and diagnostic and therapeutic consequences. The benefit was comparably small in patients below the age of 40 years and particularly great in patients above the age of 65, in patients submitted to endoscopy because of barium meal pathology or general suspicion of malignancy, and in patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeding. In general, the present study supports the widespread use of upper gastrointestinal endoscopy in clinical practice.     

Barrett's esophagus and endoscopically assessed esophagogastric junction integrity in 1000 consecutive Turkish patients undergoing endoscopy: a prospective study

Barrett's esophagus (BE) appears to be more common in Western than in Asian countries. BE is a complication of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Anatomical abnormalities of the esophagogastric junction (EGJ) are an important factor in the pathogenesis of GERD. We aimed to determine the prevalence of BE in Turkey, which is geographically located between Europe and Asia, and to investigate the frequency of BE according to the degree of anatomical disruption in the EGJ. This prospective study was performed on 1000 consecutive patients referred for endoscopy for any clinical indication. All patients underwent a structured interview that assessed major symptoms of GERD (regurgitation and heartburn). BE was diagnosed when specialized intestinal metaplasia was detected histologically in the esophageal biopsy specimens. Endoscopically assessed integrity of the EGJ was classified as one of three types, as follows:

• 1 Normal EGJ. The endoscope shaft was gripped tightly by the cardia in retroflexed endoscopy, or it was gripped less tightly but the cardia was seen to open and close with respiration.
• 2 Widened EGJ. The cardia was open during all phases of respiration in retroflexed endoscopy, but there was no endoscopic evidence of hiatal hernia (HH) on the antegrade view.
• 3 HH. The axial length from the EGJ to the diaphragmatic hiatus was at least 2 cm.

BE was found in 12 patients (1.2%). Normal EGJ was seen in 90.7% of patients, widened EGJ in 4.3%, and HH in 5%. Patients with widened EGJ had a significantly higher incidence of major reflux symptoms and erosive esophagitis compared with those with normal EGJ (P= 0.001). BE was found in 14% of patients with HH and in 0.5% of patients with a normal EGJ (P= 0.001). None of the patients with widened EGJ had BE. In terms of BE frequency, these patients did not differ significantly from those with normal EGJ (P= 0.793) but did differ significantly from those with HH (P= 0.014). The prevalence of BE was 1.2% in a Turkish population undergoing endoscopy for any reason. In terms of EGJ integrity, comparison of the groups showed that even in the absence of HH, patients with widening of the EGJ had an increased prevalence of major reflux symptoms and erosive esophagitis. However, histologically confirmed BE was not seen among patients with widened EGJ.     

The yield of diagnostic upper endoscopy: results of a prospective audit

Because of its widespread availability and the generally increasing economic pressure, endoscopy needs critical scrutiny to establish appropriate clinical guidelines. We carried out a prospective evaluation of 200 consecutive upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopies to ascertain the frequency of abnormal findings when specific indications were the impetus to endoscopy. Those indications were esophageal complaints, upper GI bleeding, abdominal discomfort, known premalignant disorders and abnormal findings on barium meal. The overall frequency of abnormal findings for all indications was 66%. Abnormal endoscopic findings were most often present when upper GI bleeding or premalignant conditions (88 and 87%, respectively) were reasons for endoscopy. Endoscopic confirmation of lesions seen on barium meal was 64%. Only 37% of patients endoscoped for abdominal discomfort had abnormal findings. Moreover, as symptoms resolved in 70% of such patients within 1 to 9 weeks, the low yield of endoscopy suggests that our current threshold for endoscopy in this setting may be too low. Refinement of the indications for and reassessment of the timing of endoscopy are needed.     

Capsule endoscopy in clinical routine in patients with suspected disease of the small intestine: a 2-year prospective study

OBJECTIVE: Capsule endoscopy is a promising method for examining the small intestine. The study was performed to evaluate the use of capsule endoscopy in clinical routine in patients with suspected disease of the small intestine. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Consecutive patients with clinically suspected disease of the small intestine referred for capsule endoscopy between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2004 were included in the study. All patients had previously completed a conventional diagnostic work-up with upper and lower endoscopy as well as abdominal CT scan or small-bowel enteroclysis. RESULTS: A total of 167 patients were referred during the time period and 195 procedures were performed. Seventeen (8.7%) of the procedures were unsuccessful, with no visualization of the small bowel. In the remaining procedures the caecum was reached in 83%. The reason for referral was gastrointestinal bleeding (30%), iron-deficiency anaemia (25%), abdominal pain (15%), diarrhoea (13%) and Crohn's disease (12%). Pathology was found in 27% of the patients, with the highest diagnostic yield in patients referred for Crohn's disease (60%) and the lowest yield (4%) in patients referred for abdominal pain. There were no complications, with the exception of one patient referred for Crohn's disease who had transient abdominal pain during the procedure. CONCLUSIONS: Capsule endoscopy is a safe and well-tolerated procedure. In unselected patients with clinically suspected disease of the small intestine, the procedure gives additional information to conventional diagnostic procedures in 27% of patients. Incomplete examination of the small intestine was frequent in our group of patients.     

The diagnostic value of the duodenal biopsy: A clinico-pathologic analysis of 28,000 patients

BackgroundDuodenal biopsies are frequently obtained to investigate malabsorption, diarrhoea, and aneamia. The proportion of patients who have duodenal biopsies and their diagnostic yield are unclear.AimsTo determine what proportion of patients undergoing esophagogastroduodenoscopy in a private setting has duodenal biopsies and to evaluate the diagnostic yield relative to clinical indications and endoscopic findings.MethodsRecords of patients who had duodenal biopsies diagnosed at a United States gastrointestinal pathology laboratory in a single year were analysed.Results28,210 patients with and 75,175 without duodenal biopsies were studied. Duodenal biopsy patients were younger (52 years versus 58 years, p < 0.001) and more likely to be female (OR 1.46; p < 0.0001); 87% of children and 27% of adults had duodenal biopsies. Suspicion of malabsorption or sprue, diarrhoea, aneamia, and weight loss were strong predictors of duodenal biopsy. More than 80% of patients had normal duodenum, except those biopsied for sprue, 64% of whom had normal findings. Marsh II–IIIc lesions were diagnosed in 23% of patients with suspected sprue, but in 3.0% of those with diarrhoea, weight loss, or aneamia, and in 1.5% of patients with dyspepsia or GERD.ConclusionsA clinical suspicion of sprue produces the highest yield of histopathologic abnormalities; women are biopsied more often than men despite having less duodenal pathology.     

Reliability of the "immersion technique" during routine upper endoscopy for detection of abnormalities of duodenal villi in patients with dyspepsia

BACKGROUND: Upper endoscopy is not routinely performed to directly detect abnormalities of the duodenal villi. The reliability of the immersion technique for assessment of duodenal villi was evaluated in a series of patients with dyspepsia. METHODS: A total of 396 patients who were to undergo standard EGD for dyspeptic symptoms were enrolled. Patients with suspected malabsorption were excluded. By performing a "modified immersion technique," duodenal villi were scored as the following: definitely present, partially present, or definitely absent. Three duodenal biopsy specimens were obtained from each patient, and villi also were scored histologically as the following: normal, partial villous pattern, or total villous atrophy. RESULTS: Sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of the modified immersion technique for detection of total villous atrophy were 100%, 99.7%, 85.7%, and 100%, respectively. Sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of modified immersion technique for detection of partial villous patterns were 75%, 99.5%, 60%, and 99.7%, respectively. Sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values for modified immersion technique detection of any villous abnormality (partial or total villous atrophy) were 90.9%, 99.5%, 83.3%, and 99.7%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: During standard EGD, duodenal evaluation by modified immersion technique can reliably detect abnormalities of duodenal villi. This simple diagnostic technique may be performed routinely during endoscopic exploration of duodenum.     

Capsule endoscopy in clinical routine in patients with suspected disease of the small intestine: A 2-year prospective study

Objective. Capsule endoscopy is a promising method for examining the small intestine. The study was performed to evaluate the use of capsule endoscopy in clinical routine in patients with suspected disease of the small intestine. Material and methods. Consecutive patients with clinically suspected disease of the small intestine referred for capsule endoscopy between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2004 were included in the study. All patients had previously completed a conventional diagnostic work-up with upper and lower endoscopy as well as abdominal CT scan or small-bowel enteroclysis. Results. A total of 167 patients were referred during the time period and 195 procedures were performed. Seventeen (8.7%) of the procedures were unsuccessful, with no visualization of the small bowel. In the remaining procedures the caecum was reached in 83%. The reason for referral was gastrointestinal bleeding (30%), iron-deficiency anaemia (25%), abdominal pain (15%), diarrhoea (13%) and Crohn's disease (12%). Pathology was found in 27% of the patients, with the highest diagnostic yield in patients referred for Crohn's disease (60%) and the lowest yield (4%) in patients referred for abdominal pain. There were no complications, with the exception of one patient referred for Crohn's disease who had transient abdominal pain during the procedure. Conclusions. Capsule endoscopy is a safe and well-tolerated procedure. In unselected patients with clinically suspected disease of the small intestine, the procedure gives additional information to conventional diagnostic procedures in 27% of patients. Incomplete examination of the small intestine was frequent in our group of patients.     

Unsedated ultrathin upper endoscopy is better than conventional endoscopy in routine outpatient gastroenterology practice： A randomized trial

AIM: to compare the feasibility and patients' tolerance of esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) using a thin endoscope with those of conventional oral EGD and to determine the optimal route of introduction of small-caliber endoscopes. METHODS: One hundred and sixty outpatients referred for diagnostic EGD were randomly allocated to 3 groups: conventional (C)-EGD (9.8 mm in diameter), transnasal (TN)-EGD and transoral (TO)-EGD (5.9 mm in diameter). Pre-EGD anxiety was measured using a 100-mm visual analogue scale (VAS). After EGD, patients and endoscopists completed a questionnaire on the pain, nausea, choking, overall discomfort, and quality of the examination either using VAS or answering some questions. The duration of EGD was timed. Blood oxygen saturation (SaO2) and heart rate (HR) were monitored during EGD. RESULTS: Twenty-one patients refused to participate in the study. The 3 groups were well-matched for age, gender, experience with EGD, and anxiety. EGD was completed in 91.1% (41/45), 97.5% (40/41), and 96.2% (51/53) of cases in TN-EGD, TO-EGD, and C-EGD groups, respectively. TN-EGD lasted longer (3.11 ± 1.60 min) than TO-EGD (2.25 ± 1.45 min) and C-EGD (2.49 ± 1.64 min) (P < 0.05). The overall tolerance was higher (P < 0.05) and the overall discomfort was lower (P < 0.05) in TN-EGD group than in C-EGD group. EGD was tolerated "better than expected" in 73.2% of patients in TN-EGD group and 55% and 39.2% of patients in TO-EGD and C-EGD groups, respectively (P < 0.05). Endoscopy was tolerated "worst than expected" in 4.9% of patients in TN-EGD group and 17.5% and 23.5% of patients in TO-EGD and C-EGD groups, respectively (P < 0.05). TN-EGDcaused mild epistaxis in one case. The ability to insufflate air, wash the lens, and suction of the thin endoscope were lower than those of conventional instrument (P < 0.001). All biopsies performed were adequate for histological assessment. CONCLUSION: Diagnostic TN-EGD is better tolerated than C-EGD. Narrow-diameter endoscope has a level of diagnostic accuracy comparable to that of conventional gastroscope, even though some technical characteristics of these instruments should be improved. Transnasal EGD with narrow-diameter endoscope should be proposed to all patients undergoing diagnostic EGD.     

放大结合窄带成像在上消化道内镜检查中指导靶向活检的价值

目的探讨放大内镜（magnifying endoscopy,ME）结合窄带成像（narrow—band imaging,NBI）在上消化道胃镜检查中指导靶向活检的价值。方法筛选普通白光胃镜检查活检提示存在低级别上皮内瘤变的患者或直径大于2．0cm的胃溃疡患者,共200例,随机分成2组,2—4周复查胃镜。普通白光胃镜组：普通白光胃镜观察后局部活检。ME—NBI组：根据放大胃镜下表现,在病变最严重部位靶向活检。分析普通胃镜活检结果与ME—NBI靶向活检结果与最终病理诊断结果的关系。结果200例患者中,3例患者失访,共完成197例。普通白光胃镜组100例,其中食管病变23例,胃病变77例。ME—NBI组97例,其中食管病变19例,胃病变78例。ME-NBI组平均每例活检数（2．95块）与普通胃镜组（4．56块）相比差异具有统计学意义（P〈0．001）。与最终病理结果符合率：ME—NBI90．7％（88／97）,普通胃镜71．0％（71／100）。两组间差异具有统计学意义（P〈0．01）。结论ME—NBI技术操作简便,可清晰观察病灶微细结构,有助于提高早期上消化道肿瘤的靶向活检准确率,在常规胃镜检查中发现可疑病灶后,可使用ME．NBI观察,指导靶向活检。     

消化道症状与胃镜检查结果相关性的前瞻性研究

目的　探讨初次胃镜检查患者的检查结果与消化道症状的相关性。方法　2017年1—12月,在上海交通大学医学院附属仁济医院门诊行初次胃镜检查者作为问卷调查对象,详细登记消化道主要症状,之后2周内完成胃镜检查,将胃镜下诊断与病理诊断结合作为最终胃镜诊断,根据最终胃镜诊断结果将患者分为主要病变（消化性溃疡和恶性肿瘤）组和非主要病变（慢性胃炎、反流性食管炎及其他）组。分析消化道症状与胃镜检查结果的相关性,并采用多因素Logistic回归分析评估消化道不同症状者胃镜检出主要病变（消化性溃疡和恶性肿瘤）的风险。结果　共5 885例完成问卷调查,其中5 496例（93.4%）完成胃镜检查。在消化不良症状、反流症状、报警症状、其他症状和无症状患者中,消化性溃疡的检出率分别为12.3%（373/3 028）、12.6%（52/412）、17.9%（49/273）、9.5%（64/675）和9.2%（102/1 108）,恶性肿瘤的检出率分别为1.2%（36/3 028）、0.7%（3/412）、7.7%（21/273）、0.7%（5/675）和0.4%（4/1 108）。消化性溃疡和恶性肿瘤患者最常见的均为消化不良症状,分别占58.3%（373/640）和52.2%（36/69）。恶性肿瘤患者出现报警症状占30.4%（21/69）。15.9%（102/640）的消化性溃疡患者和5.8%（4/69）的恶性肿瘤患者无消化道症状。相对于消化道无症状者,有消化不良症状者（P<0.001,OR=1.52,95%CI：1.21～1.92）、有报警症状者（P<0.001,OR=2.87,95%CI：2.02～4.08）胃镜检出主要病变（消化性溃疡及恶性肿瘤）的风险均明显增加。结论　尽管消化不良症状和报警症状与上消化道主要病变（消化性溃疡及恶性肿瘤）有一定相关性,但对上消化道主要病变的预测作用有限。