Single-center experience of 309 consecutive patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding

Yield of capsule endoscopy and subsequent device-assisted enteroscopy: experience at an Australian tertiary centre

BACKGROUND

Small bowel capsule endoscopy (SBCE) and device-assisted enteroscopy (DAE) have an established role in the investigation and management of small bowel pathology. Previous studies have reported on the yield of SBCE (60%) and DAE (57%), but none have been in an Australian setting.

AIMS

To determine the yield of SBCE and any DAE performed as a direct consequence of SBCE in an Australian referral centre.

METHODS

A single-centre retrospective study was conducted at a tertiary hospital in Australia, enrolling consecutive patients between 1 January 2009 and 31 December 2021 undergoing SBCE. Data were collected with respect to demographics, procedural factors and findings, as well as findings and interventions of any DAE procedures performed after the SBCE.

RESULTS

1214 SBCEs were performed, with a median age of 66 years old (60.8% men). The predominant indications were anaemia (n = 853, 70.2%) and overt gastrointestinal bleeding (n = 320, 26.4%). Of the complete small bowel studies (1132/1214, 93.2%), abnormal findings were detected in 588 cases (51.9%), most commonly angioectasias (266/588, 45.2%), erosions (106/588, 18.0%) and ulcers (97/588, 8.6%). 165 patients underwent a DAE (117 antegrade, 48 retrograde). Antegrade DAE had a higher yield than retrograde DAE (77.8% vs 54.2%; P = 0.002) and a higher rate of intervention (69.2% vs 37.5%; P < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

In this largest single-centre cohort of patients undergoing SBCE to date, there is a similar yield of abnormal findings compared to existing literature. DAE, especially with an antegrade approach, had high diagnostic and therapeutic yield when pursued after a positive SBCE study.

Efficacy and safety of capsule endoscopy in octogenarian patients: a retrospective study

BACKGROUND

Life expectancy and the number of ultra-octogenarians increased significantly, thus making crucial the appropriateness of several endoscopic procedures in elderly patients. The aim of our study was to provide a retrospective analysis of the efficacy and safety of capsule endoscopy (CE) in patients aged over 80 years.

METHODS

In this single-centre study, 900 patients underwent capsule endoscopy between 2002 and 2015 for different indications; of these 106 patients aged ≥80 years (group A) and 99 patients aged 40-60 years (control group B) were retrospectively selected.

RESULTS

Occult gastrointestinal bleeding accounted for 62.1% of all indications for capsule endoscopy in group B, compared to 95.2% in group A (P<0.001). Although not statistically significant, the diagnostic yield was higher in group A (71%) vs. group B (62%). The percentages of reaching the cecum and the median gastric transit time were uniform within the two groups. In contrast, small bowel transit time was longer in group A vs. B. Small bowel preparation was similar in the two groups. The exam was generally well tolerated in both groups, with capsule aspiration being one of the main adverse events, which occurred in two elderly patients.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data expand previous findings confirming that capsule endoscopy can be performed safely even in very old patients and show that the diagnostic yield is similar to that of younger patients.

Causes and Clinical Characteristics of Small Bowel Bleeding in Northern Vietnam

AIM

Causes, clinical features, and diagnostic approaches for small bowel (SB) bleeding were analyzed to derive recommendations in dealing with this clinical condition.

METHODS

We included 54 patients undergoing surgical treatment for SB bleeding, from January 2009 to December 2019. Detailed clinical data, diagnosis procedures, and causes of bleeding were collected.

RESULTS

Among 54 cases with SB bleeding, the most common causes were tumors (64.8%), followed by angiopathy (14.8%), ulcers (9.3%), diverticula (5.6%), tuberculosis (3.7%), and enteritis (1.9%). Most tumors (32/35 cases, 91.4%) and vascular lesions (8/8 cases, 100%) were located in the jejunum. The incidence of tumors was higher in the older (30/41 cases, 73.1%) than that in patients younger than 40 years of age (5/13 cases, 38.5%, P < 0.01). Common initial findings were melena (68.5%) and hematochezia (31.5%). The overall diagnostic yield of computed tomographic enterography (CTE) was 57.4% (31/54 cases), with the figures for tumors, vascular lesions, and inflammatory lesions being 71.4% (25/35 cases), 62.5% (5/8 cases), and 12.5% (1/8 cases), respectively. Double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE) definitively identified SB bleeding sources in 16/22 (72.7%) patients.

CONCLUSION

Tumors, angiopathy, ulcers, and diverticula were the most common causes of SB bleeding in Northern Vietnamese population. CTE has a high detection rate for tumors in patients with SB bleeding. CTE as a triage tool may identify patients before double-balloon enteroscopy because of the high prevalence of SB tumors.

Performance measures for small-bowel endoscopy: A European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE) Quality Improvement Initiative

The European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE) together with the United European Gastroenterology (UEG) recently developed a short list of performance measures for small-bowel endoscopy (i.e. small-bowel capsule endoscopy and device-assisted enteroscopy) with the final goal of providing endoscopy services across Europe with a tool for quality improvement. Six key performance measures both for small-bowel capsule endoscopy and for device-assisted enteroscopy were selected for inclusion, with the intention being that practice at both a service and endoscopist level should be evaluated against them. Other performance measures were considered to be less relevant, based on an assessment of their overall importance, scientific acceptability, and feasibility. Unlike lower and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, for which performance measures had already been identified, this is the first time small-bowel endoscopy quality measures have been proposed.

Role of computed tomography angiography on the management of overt obscure gastrointestinal bleeding

Background and aim

The role of computed tomography angiography (CTA) on the management of acute overt obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) remains unclear. We designed a study to evaluate the impact of CTA before enteroscopy for acute overt OGIB.

Methods

All patients undergoing CTA followed by enteroscopy for acute overt OGIB were enrolled in this retrospective study. Clinical characteristics and diagnosis were compared between patients with positive and negative CTA findings. We evaluated the impact of CTA on subsequent enteroscopy.

Results

From February 2008 to March 2015, 71 patients including 25 patients with positive CTA findings and 46 patients with negative CTA findings, were enrolled. All 25 patients with positive CTA findings were confirmed to have mid GI lesions, a significantly higher proportion than among patients with negative CTA findings (100% vs. 52.2%, respectively; P <0.001). CTA had a higher diagnostic yield for bleeding from tumor origin than from non-tumor origin (80.0% vs. 23.7%, respectively; P <0.001). The diagnostic yield of CTA and enteroscopy was 35.2% and 73.2%, respectively. The lesions could be identified by the initial route of enteroscopy in more patients with positive CTA findings than in those with negative CTA findings (92.0% vs. 47.8%, respectively; P <0.001). Lesions could be identified in seven of the 25 patients (28.0%) with positive CTA findings by using only push enteroscopy instead of single-balloon enteroscopy (SBE), but all 46 patients with negative CTA findings needed SBE for deep small-bowel examination.

Conclusions

CTA is useful in the diagnosis of acute overt OGIB, especially in patients with bleeding from tumors. In addition, it also can show the precise location of bleeding, and guide subsequent enteroscopic management.

Detection of suspected small bowel bleeding: challenges and controversies

Detection of small bowel (SB) bleeding remains a challenge to gastroenterologists, with a dearth of standardized recommendations regarding evaluation and management. Areas covered: A recursive literature search was performed using PubMed, Cochrane and Medline databases for original and review articles on SB and obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB). Based upon the available literature, this review outlines the main challenges and controversies, and provides a practical and cost-effective approach towards SB bleeding. Expert commentary: SB bleeding is suspected in patients with persistent or recurrent bleeding after negative bidirectional endoscopy, and unexplained iron deficiency anemia. Selection of test(s) should be individualized based upon patient presentation and suspicion for type of underlying lesion. Endoscopic or radiologic evaluation and treatment is the mainstay in the majority of patients, while pharmacologic agents may have a role in patients with refractory bleeding, and those unable to undergo evaluation.

The Role of Capsule Endoscopy in Patients with Obscure Gastrointestinal Bleeding

Obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) accounts for 5% of all gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding cases and is often caused by small bowel lesions. Capsule endoscopy (CE), which allows non-invasive visualization of the small bowel mucosa, has revolutionized the evaluation of OGIB. CE is preferred by both patients and physicians mainly because of its non-invasiveness, and is widely used as the first-line diagnostic modality for OGIB. The diagnostic yield of CE in OGIB has been reported to be in the range of 32% to 83%. Although no direct comparison has been made, a meta-analysis showed similar diagnostic yields between CE and double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE) for OGIB. However, CE could enhance the yield of subsequent DBE and serve as a guide for optimizing the insertion route for DBE. Even after negative CE, selected patients could benefit from second-look CE for OGIB. In terms of outcomes, a favorable clinical impact after CE has been reported in several studies. However, observations indicate that CE might not influence clinical outcomes directly, but rather play a role in selecting patients with OGIB who are likely to benefit from subsequent evaluation and intervention.

Long-term outcome in patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding after capsule endoscopy

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to identify the risk factors associated with rebleeding and long-term outcomes after capsule endoscopy (CE) for obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) in a follow-up study.

METHODS

Data of consecutive patients who underwent CE due to OGIB from June 2002 to January 2012 were retrospectively reviewed. The Cox proportional hazard model was used to evaluate the risk factors associated with rebleeding, while Kaplan-Meier survival curves and the log-rank test were used to analyze cumulative rebleeding rates.

RESULTS

The overall rebleeding rate after CE in patients with OGIB was 28.6% (97/339) during a median follow-up of 48 months (range 12-112 months). Multivariate analysis showed that age ≥60 years (hazard ratio [HR] 2.473, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.576-3.881, P = 0.000), positive CE findings (HR 3.393, 95% CI 1.931-5.963, P = 0.000), hemoglobin ≤70 g/L before CE (HR 2.010, 95% CI 1.261-3.206, P = 0.003), nonspecific treatments (HR 2.500, 95% CI 1.625-3.848, P = 0.000) and the use of anticoagulants, antiplatelet or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs after CE (HR 2.851, 95% CI 1.433-5.674, P = 0.003) were independent risk factors associated with rebleeding. Univariate analysis showed that chronic hepatitis was independently associated with rebleeding in CE-negative patients (P = 0.021).

CONCLUSIONS

CE has a significant impact on the long-term outcome of patients with OGIB. Further investigation and close follow-up in patients with OGIB and those with negative CE findings are necessary.

Small Bowel Endoscopy Diagnostic Yield and Reasons of Obscure GI Bleeding in Chinese Patients

Aim. To investigate the diagnostic yield and etiologies of patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) using capsule endoscopy (CE) or double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE). Method. We studied the data of 532 consecutive patients with OGIB that were referred to Xinqiao Hospital in Chongqing from December 2005 to January 2012. A lesion that was believed to be the source of the bleeding (ulceration, mass lesion, vascular lesion, visible blood, inflammation, or others) was considered to be a positive finding. We analyzed the diagnostic yield of CE and SBE and the etiologies of OGIB. Result. CE and SBE have similar diagnostic yields, at 71.9% (196/231) and 71.8% (251/304), respectively. The most common etiology was erosions/ulceration (27.1%) followed by mass lesion (19.4%) and angiodysplastic/vascular lesions (13.9%). By stratified analysis, we found that erosions/ulceration (27.1%) was the most common etiology for the 21-40-year age group. Mass lesion was the most common etiology in the 41-60-year age group. However, in the >60 years age group, angiodysplastic/vascular lesions were significantly increased compared with the other groups, even though erosions/ulceration was most common. Conclusion. In this study, we found that CE and SBE have similar diagnostic yields and erosions/ulceration was the most common reason for OGIB, followed by mass lesion and angiodysplasias.

Is Occult Obscure Gastrointestinal Bleeding a Definite Indication for Capsule Endoscopy? A Retrospective Analysis of Diagnostic Yield in Patients with Occult versus Overt Bleeding

Background/Aim. Usefulness of capsule endoscopy (CE) for diagnosing small-bowel lesions in patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) has been reported. Most reports have addressed the clinical features of overt OGIB, with few addressing occult OGIB. We aimed to clarify whether occult OGIB is a definite indication for CE. Methods. We retrospectively compared the cases of 102 patients with occult OGIB and 325 patients with overt OGIB, all having undergone CE. The diagnostic yield of CE and identification of various lesion types were determined in cases of occult OGIB versus overt OGIB. Results. There was no significant difference in diagnostic yield between occult and overt OGIB. The small-bowel lesions in cases of occult OGIB were diagnosed as ulcer/erosive lesions (n = 18, 18%), vascular lesions (n = 11, 11%), and tumors (n = 4, 3%), and those in cases of overt OGIB were diagnosed as ulcer/erosive lesions (n = 51, 16%), vascular lesions (n = 31, 10%), and tumors (n = 20, 6%). Conclusion. CE detection rates and CE identification of various small-bowel diseases do not differ between patients with occult versus overt OGIB. CE should be actively performed for patients with either occult or overt OGIB.

Meckel’s diverticulum bleeding diagnosed with magnetic resonance enterography: A case report

Although the introduction of double-balloon enteroscopy has greatly improved the diagnostic rate, definite diagnosis of Meckel’s diverticulum far from the ileocecal valve is still impossible in most cases. We explored the role of magnetic resonance (MR) enterography in detecting bleeding from Meckel’s diverticulum that can not be confirmed via double-balloon enteroscopy. This study describes a case of male patient with bleeding from Meckel’s diverticulum diagnosed with MR enterography of the small intestine. No bleeding lesion was found via colonoscopy, anal enteroscopy, or oral colonoscopy. MR enterography of the small intestine revealed an occupying lesion of 3.0 cm in the lower segment of the ileum. The patient was transferred to the Department of Abdominal Surgery of our hospital for surgical treatment. During surgery, a mass of 3 cm × 2 cm was found 150 cm from the ileocecal valve, in conjunction with congestion and edema of the corresponding mesangium. Intraoperative diagnosis was small bowel diverticulum with bleeding. The patient underwent partial resection of the small intestine. Postoperative pathology showed Meckel’s diverticulum containing pancreatic tissues. He was cured and discharged 7 d after operation. We conclude that MR enterography of the small intestine has greatly improved the diagnosis rate of Meckel’s diverticulum, particularly in those patients with the disease which can not be confirmed via double-balloon enteroscopy.

MiroCam capsule for obscure gastrointestinal bleeding: a prospective, single centre experience

BACKGROUND

Capsule endoscopy is an established tool for the evaluation of obscure gastrointestinal bleeding but published literature is mostly limited to PillCam SB (Given Imaging, Israel).

AIMS

The aims of this study were to determine the findings, the diagnostic yield and the rebleeding rate in a series of patients with overt or occult obscure gastrointestinal bleeding studied with MiroCam(Intromedic, Seoul, Korea) capsule endoscopy.

METHODS

Data of 118 patients who underwent capsule endoscopy for overt or occult obscure gastrointestinal bleeding were prospectively collected between March 2009 and March 2011.

RESULTS

Evaluation of the entire small bowel (completion rate) was achieved in 96% of cases. Relevant lesions occurred in 58% of patients. Angiodysplasias was the most common finding. Six patients (9% of the positive findings) had a non-small-bowel lesion detected by capsule. The yield of capsule endoscopy in the overt group was greater than in the occult group but without achieving a significant difference (61% vs. 54%, p>0.05). Rebleeding rate was lower in patients with a negative examination (6%) than in patients with a positive one (17%) (p=0.03). Capsule retention was registered in 3 of 118 patients (2.5%).

CONCLUSIONS

MiroCam capsule endoscopy is a safe and effective tool for exploring small bowel with a high completion rate.

Impact of inpatient status and gender on small-bowel capsule endoscopy findings

BACKGROUND

Video capsule endoscopy (VCE) is most commonly performed in the outpatient setting to evaluate obscure GI bleeding.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the impact of gender and inpatient status on VCE findings.

DESIGN

Retrospective study.

SETTING

Two tertiary medical centers and a VA medical center.

PATIENTS

A total of 167 inpatients and 540 outpatients undergoing 707 VCE examinations for obscure GI bleeding.

INTERVENTIONS

VCE study.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS

Patient age, sex, indication for VCE, gastric and small-bowel transit times, significant VCE findings including detection of blood in the lumen and major lesions outside the small bowel, and presence of comorbid conditions.

RESULTS

Significant VCE findings were identified more frequently during inpatient VCE examinations (48% vs 37%, P = .009). Endoscopic placement, nongastric passage, and incomplete studies to the cecum were more common for inpatient VCE examinations. Gastric transit time, but not small-bowel transit time, was longer in inpatient VCE studies. Inpatient VCE examinations were more common in male patients (73% vs 61%, P = .004) and patients with overt bleeding (83% vs 46%, P < .05). The overall diagnostic VCE rate was higher for male patients because of a higher prevalence of angiodysplastic lesions and major findings outside the small bowel.

LIMITATIONS

Retrospective study. Lack of information regarding timing of VCE study, most recent episode of obscure bleeding, and comorbidity data for outpatients.

CONCLUSION

The overall diagnostic yield was higher for inpatient VCE examinations. Male patients were more likely to demonstrate significant findings on both inpatient and outpatient VCE studies because of a higher prevalence of angiodysplastic lesions and findings outside the small bowel.

Single center experience of capsule endoscopy in patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding

AIM: To identify optimum timing to maximize diagnostic yield by capsule endoscopy (CE) in patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB).

METHODS: We identified patients who underwent CE at our institution from August 2003 to December 2009. Patient medical records were reviewed to determine type of OGIB (occult, overt), CE results and complications, and timing of CE with respect to onset of bleeding.

RESULTS: Out of 385 patients investigated for OGIB, 284 (74%) had some lesion detected by CE. In 222 patients (58%), definite lesions were detected that could unequivocally explain OGIB. Small bowel ulcer/erosions secondary to Crohn’s disease, tuberculosis or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent use were the commonest lesions detected. Patients with overt GI bleeding for < 48 h before CE had the highest diagnostic yield (87%). This was significantly greater (P < 0.05) compared to that in patients with overt bleeding prior to 48 h (68%), as well as those with occult OGIB (59%).

CONCLUSION: We established the importance of early CE in management of OGIB. CE within 48 h of overt bleeding has the greatest potential for lesion detection.