Endoscopic Management of Pancreatic Fluid Collections: An Update

Pancreatic fluid collections (PFCs) are a frequent complication of acute pancreatitis. PFCs have been categorized according to their content and duration after an episode of pancreatitis. Acute collections (4 weeks) can be usually managed conservatively. Late collections including walled off necrosis (WON) and pancreatic pseudocysts (PP) have a well-defined wall. Consequently, it is easier and safer to drain these collections when required. The most common indication to drain PFCs is infection and the available means of drainage include surgical, endoscopic, and percutaneous. Open surgical interventions carry a high risk of morbidity and mortality. Therefore, in the current era, a step up approach is preferred to minimize morbidity over the more aggressive surgical treatments. Endoscopic step-up approach is effective and favored over minimally invasive surgical or percutaneous drainage due to reduced risk of organ failure and external pancreatic fistula. However, the approach to PFCs should be individualized for optimal outcomes. A small subgroup of patients does not respond to endotherapy or percutaneous interventions and requires open surgical debridement. Similarly, not all PFCs are amenable to endoscopic drainage and demand alternative modalities like percutaneous or minimally invasive surgical drainage

Endoscopic Management of Combined Biliary and Duodenal Obstruction

Combined obstruction of the bile duct and duodenum is a common occurrence in periampullary malignancies. The obstruction of gastric outlet or duodenum can follow, occur simultaneously, or precede biliary obstruction. The prognosis in patients with combined obstruction is particularly poor. Therefore, minimally invasive palliation is preferred in these patients to avoid morbidity associated with surgery. Endoscopic palliation is preferred to surgical bypass due to similar efficacy, less morbidity, and shorter hospital stay. The success of endoscopic palliation depends on the type of bilioduodenal stenosis and the presence of previously placed duodenal metal stents. Biliary cannulation is difficult in type II bilioduodenal strictures where the duodenal stenosis is located at the level of the papilla. Consequentially, technical and clinical success is lower in these patients than in those with type I and III bilioduodenal strictures. However, in cases with failure of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, with the introduction of endoscopic ultrasound for biliary drainage, the success of endoscopic bilioduodenal bypass is likely to increase further. The safety and efficacy of endoscopic ultrasound-guided drainage has been documented in multiple studies. With the development of dedicated accessories and standardization of drainage techniques, the role of endoscopic ultrasound is likely to expand further in cases with double obstruction

Role of Small Bowel Endoscopy in Diagnosis and Management of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Current Perspective

The evaluation of small bowel in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is mainly performed in cases with newly diagnosed or suspected Crohn’s disease (CD). The available modalities for small bowel evaluation include radiological imaging (barium meal follow through, magnetic resonance enteroclysis, computed tomography enteroclysis) and small bowel endoscopy also known as enteroscopy. The main advantage of small bowel endoscopy over radiological imaging is that it allows for obtaining biopsy specimen required for histological confirmation of the diagnosis. Various endoscopic modalities for endoscopic evaluation of small bowel include push enteroscopy and device assisted enteroscopy (DAE). Push enteroscopy allows only limited evaluation of proximal small bowel. Therefore, DAE is generally preferred over push enteroscopy for small bowel evaluation. DAE includes single balloon enteroscopy, double balloon enteroscopy, and spiral enteroscopy. The available literature suggests that there is no significant difference in the diagnostic yield among the available DAE devices. Therefore, the choice of DAE is largely dependent on the availability as well as local expertise. More recently, motorised spiral enteroscopy has been introduced. The main advantage of this novel DAE is ease of use with the possibility of evaluating the entire small bowel via per-oral route. However, the data regarding the use of motorised spiral enteroscopy is limited and comparative trials are required in future

Peroral Endoscopic Myotomy in a Patient with Achalasia Cardia with Prior Heller's Myotomy

Achalasia cardia is an esophageal myenteric plexus disorder characterized by absence of or incomplete lower esophageal sphincter relaxation and esophageal aperistalsis; Heller's myotomy is the main treatment of choice due to a lower failure rate. Recently, peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) has been reported as an alternative treatment for Achalasia due to persistent symptoms after Heller's myotomy. An Indian male, aged 18 years, was admitted to the hospital due to dysphagia which had started more than 3 years ago. He also complained of occasional regurgitation and retrosternal pain with Eckardt score 6. Heller's myotomy was performed 2 years ago. Barium swallow showed Achalasia cardia and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy found liquid residue and resistance at the gastroesophageal junction. Esophageal manometry is concluded as Achalasia cardia type II with a median integrated relaxation pressure (IRP) of 25.6 mm Hg. He underwent POEM; with the help of a submucosal tunnel, an extension of up to 1 cm beyond the gastroesophageal junction could be achieved with a posterior orientation of myotomy. There were no adverse events after the POEM procedure. He was treated with a soft diet for 10 days and other supportive treatments. Following POEM, barium swallow showed a significant improvement and esophageal manometry exhibited that the basal lower esophageal sphincter pressure was normal with complete relaxation on swallowing and normal median IRP. The post-procedure Eckardt score was 0. We reported an Achalasia patient who received POEM after unsuccessful Heller's myotomy and showed clinical improvement. © 2020 The Author(s). Published by S. Karger AG, Basel

Role of Interventional IBD in Management of Ulcerative Colitis(UC)-Associated Neoplasia and Post-Operative Pouch Complications in UC: A Systematic Review

Interventional inflammatory bowel disease (IIBD) is going to play a major role in complex IBD including ulcerative-colitis associated neoplasia (UCAN) and postoperative complications after ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) in ulcerative colitis (UC). We performed a literature search in PubMed using keywords such as “UCAN” and “endoscopic management of pouch complications,” After screening 1221 citations, finally, 91 relevant citations were identified for the systematic review. Endoscopic recognition of dysplasia should be done by high-definition white light endoscopy (HD-WLE) or dye-based/virtual chromoendoscopy (CE) especially in known dysplasia or primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). Endoscopically visible lesions without deep submucosal invasion can be resected endoscopically with endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR), endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD), or using full-thickness resection device (FTRD). Image-enhanced endoscopy (IEE) and IIBD have an emerging role in screening, diagnosis, and management of colitis-associated neoplasia in UC and can avoid colectomy. IIBD can manage a significant proportion of post-IPAA complications. Pouch strictures can be treated with endoscopic balloon dilation (EBD) or stricturotomy, whereas acute and chronic anastomotic leak or sinuses can be managed with through the scope (TTS)/over the scope clips (OTSC) and endoscopic fistulotomy/sinusotomy

Endoscopic Management of Fistulas and Abscesses in Crohn’s Disease

Fistulas and abscesses in Crohn’s disease (CD) are mechanical complications of long term disease and can indicate an aggressive disease course. Usually chronic inflammation leads to stricture which leads to high intra-luminal pressure with resultant fistula and abscess upstream to stricture. Exceptions to that may include perianal fistulizing CD which may even precede luminal CD. Hence, management of fistula and abscesses entails management of associated strictures without which these are bound to recur. These mechanical complications (stricture/fistula/abscess) usually occur after initial 4–5 years of disease. Traditionally the management of these complications include surgical therapy. However, surgical therapy can be associated with substantial morbidity specially in these patients on immunosuppressive medications and post-operative recurrence is not uncommon. Interventional radiological procedures to drain intra-abdominal/pelvic abscess can be helpful provided that there are no intervening bowel loops. Hence, there is an unmet need of relatively less invasive endoscopic therapies for treatment of CD related fistulas and abscesses. In this chapter, we shall discuss the role of endoscopic therapy in CD related fistula and abscess

Proactive career behaviors and subjective career success: the moderating role of national culture

Although career proactivity has positive consequences for an individual's career success, studies mostly examine objective measures of success within single countries. This raises important questions about whether proactivity is equally beneficial for different aspects of subjective career success, and the extent to which these benefits extend across cultures. Drawing on Social Information Processing theory, we examined the relationship between proactive career behaviors and two aspects of subjective career success—financial success and work‐life balance—and the moderating role of national culture. We tested our hypotheses using multilevel analyses on a large‐scale sample of 11,892 employees from 22 countries covering nine of GLOBE's 10 cultural clusters. Although we found that proactive career behaviors were positively related to subjective financial success, this relationship was not significant for work‐life balance. Furthermore, career proactivity was relatively more important for subjective financial success in cultures with high in‐group collectivism, high power distance, and low uncertainty avoidance. For work‐life balance, career proactivity was relatively more important in cultures characterized by high in‐group collectivism and humane orientation. Our findings underline the need to treat subjective career success as a multidimensional construct and highlight the complex role of national culture in shaping the outcomes of career proactivity

Endoscopic Management of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease: Revisited

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is defined by the presence of troublesome symptoms resulting from the reflux of gastric contents. The prevalence of GERD is increasing globally. An incompetent lower esophageal sphincter underlies the pathogenesis of GERD. Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) form the core of GERD management. However, a substantial number of patients do not respond well to PPIs. The next option is anti-reflux surgery, which is efficacious, but it has its own limitations, such as gas bloating, inability to belch or vomit, and dysphagia. Laparoscopic placement of magnetic augmentation device is emerging as a useful alternative to conventional anti-reflux surgery. However, invasiveness of a surgical procedure remains a concern for the patients. The proportion of PPI non-responders or partial responders who do not wish for anti-reflux surgery defines the ‘treatment gap’ and needs to be addressed. The last decade has witnessed the fall and rise of many endoscopic devices for GERD. Major endoscopic strategies include radiofrequency ablation and endoscopic fundoplication devices. Current endoscopic devices score high on subjective improvement, but have been unimpressive in objective improvement like esophageal acid exposure. In this review, we discuss the current endoscopic anti-reflux therapies and available evidence for their role in the management of GERD

Advanced Therapeutic Gastrointestinal Endoscopy in Children – Today and Tomorrow

Gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy plays an indispensable role in the diagnosis and management of various pediatric GI disorders. While the pace of development of pediatric GI endoscopy has increased over the years, it remains sluggish compared to the advancements in GI endoscopic interventions available in adults. The predominant reasons that explain this observation include lack of formal training courses in advanced pediatric GI interventions, economic constraints in establishing a pediatric endoscopy unit, and unavailability of pediatric-specific devices and accessories. However, the situation is changing and more pediatric GI specialists are now performing complex GI procedures such as endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and endoscopic ultrasonography for various pancreatico-biliary diseases and more recently, per-oral endoscopic myotomy for achalasia cardia. Endoscopic procedures are associated with reduced morbidity and mortality compared to open surgery for GI disorders. Notable examples include chronic pancreatitis, pancreatic fluid collections, various biliary diseases, and achalasia cardia for which previously open surgery was the treatment modality of choice. A solid body of evidence supports the safety and efficacy of endoscopic management in adults. However, additions continue to be made to literature describing the pediatric population. An important consideration in children includes size of children, which in turn determines the selection of endoscopes and type of sedation that can be used for the procedure