Endoscopic Ultrasound and Related Technologies for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Pancreatic Disease - Research Gaps and Opportunities: Summary of a National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases Workshop

A workshop was sponsored by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases to address the research gaps and opportunities in pancreatic endoscopic ultrasound (EUS). The event occurred on July 26, 2017 in 4 sessions: (1) benign pancreatic diseases, (2) high-risk pancreatic diseases, (3) diagnostic and therapeutics, and (4) new technologies. The current state of knowledge was reviewed, with identification of numerous gaps in knowledge and research needs. Common themes included the need for large multicenter consortia of various pancreatic diseases to facilitate meaningful research of these entities; to standardize EUS features of different pancreatic disorders, the technique of sampling pancreatic lesions, and the performance of various therapeutic EUS procedures; and to identify high-risk disease early at the cellular level before macroscopic disease develops. The need for specialized tools and accessories to enable the safe and effective performance of therapeutic EUS procedures also was discussed

EUS-derived criteria for distinguishing benign from malignant metastatic solid hepatic masses

Background Detection of hepatic metastases during EUS is an important component of tumor staging. Objective To describe our experience with EUS-guided FNA (EUS-FNA) of solid hepatic masses and derive and validate criteria to help distinguish between benign and malignant hepatic masses. Design Retrospective study, survey. Setting Single, tertiary-care referral center. Patients Medical records were reviewed for all patients undergoing EUS-FNA of solid hepatic masses over a 12-year period. Interventions EUS-FNA of solid hepatic masses. Main Outcome Measurements Masses were deemed benign or malignant according to predetermined criteria. EUS images from 200 patients were used to create derivation and validation cohorts of 100 cases each, matched by cytopathologic diagnosis. Ten expert endosonographers blindly rated 15 initial endosonographic features of each of the 100 images in the derivation cohort. These data were used to derive an EUS scoring system that was then validated by using the validation cohort by the expert endosonographer with the highest diagnostic accuracy. Results A total of 332 patients underwent EUS-FNA of a hepatic mass. Interobserver agreement regarding the initial endosonographic features among the expert endosonographers was fair to moderate, with a mean diagnostic accuracy of 73% (standard deviation 5.6). A scoring system incorporating 7 EUS features was developed to distinguish benign from malignant hepatic masses by using the derivation cohort with an area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) of 0.92; when applied to the validation cohort, performance was similar (AUC 0.86). The combined positive predictive value of both cohorts was 88%. Limitations Single center, retrospective, only one expert endosonographer deriving and validating the EUS criteria. Conclusion An EUS scoring system was developed that helps distinguish benign from malignant hepatic masses. Further study is required to determine the impact of these EUS criteria among endosonographers of all experience

Pancreatic head excavation: a variation on the theme of duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection

HYPOTHESIS: Despite the introduction of new methods for duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection, such as the Beger and Frey procedures, the management of benign lesions of the proximal pancreas remains controversial. We developed a modification of the duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection in which the proximal pancreatic duct or central core of the pancreatic head is excised by ultrasonic dissection and examined the feasibility, safety, and outcomes of this new procedure. DESIGN AND SETTING: Prospective cohort study in an academic tertiary care referral center. PATIENTS: From April 1, 2001, to September 8, 2003, 6 patients with either chronic pancreatitis (4) or benign tumors of the pancreatic head (2) underwent ultrasonic excavation of the pancreatic head, with reconstruction by a single longitudinal, Roux-en-Y pancreaticojejunostomy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Safety and cost were assessed by measures of operative time, blood loss, nasogastric drainage, and length of stay. Any complications and the degree of full functional recovery were noted. RESULTS: The technique of ultrasonic excavation of the central pancreatic head is reviewed in detail. Operative time ranged from 344 to 427 minutes (average, 390 minutes); blood loss ranged from 200 to 1300 mL (average, 475 mL); nasogastric drainage ranged from 3 to 5 days; and length of stay ranged from 6 to 8 days. No major complications occurred. Two patients had transient, probable drug-related ileus after discharge. All patients had full functional recovery. CONCLUSIONS: Our modification of the technique of duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection using ultrasonic dissection and longitudinal reconstruction appears feasible, safe, and effective for benign disease of the proximal pancreas

Colorectal cancer surveillance in primary sclerosing cholangitis and inflammatory bowel disease

Letter to the editor and case report regarding primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), the development of colorectal cancer, cancer screening, and the SCENIC consensus statement on surveillance of colorectal dysplasia

Dietary approaches following endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography: A survey of selected endoscopists

AIM: To describe the dietary recommendations of experienced endoscopists for patients who have undergone endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and the factors that influence these recommendations