Assessment of multi-modality evaluations of obscure gastrointestinal bleeding

AIM To determine the frequency of bleeding source detection in patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding(OGIB) who underwent double balloon enteroscopy(DBE) after pre-procedure imaging [multiphase computed tomography enterography(MPCTE), video capsule endoscopy(VCE), or both] and assess the impact of imaging on DBE diagnostic yield.METHODS Retrospective cohort study using a prospectively maintained database of all adult patients presenting with OGIB who underwent DBE from September 1^(st), 2002 to June 30^(th), 2013 at a single tertiary center.RESULTS Four hundred and ninety five patients(52% females; median age 68 years) underwent DBE for OGIB. AVCE and/or MPCTE performed within 1 year prior to DBE(in 441 patients) increased the diagnostic yield of DBE(67.1% with preceding imaging vs 59.5% without). Using DBE as the gold standard, VCE and MPCTE had a diagnostic yield of 72.7% and 32.5% respectively. There were no increased odds of finding a bleeding site at DBE compared to VCE(OR = 1.3, P = 0.150). There were increased odds of finding a bleeding site at DBE compared to MPCTE(OR = 5.9, P < 0.001). In inpatients with overt OGIB, diagnostic yield of DBE was not affected by preceding imaging.CONCLUSION DBE is a safe and well-tolerated procedure for the diagnosis and treatment of OGIB, with a diagnostic yield that may be increased after obtaining a preceding VCE or MPCTE. However, inpatients with active ongoing bleeding may benefit from proceeding directly to antegrade DBE.

Narrow band imaging evaluation of duodenal villi in patients with and without celiac disease:A prospective study

BACKGROUND Duodenal biopsies are commonly obtained during esophagogastroduodenoscopy(EGD) but are very often histopathologically normal. Therefore, a more strategic method for evaluating the duodenal mucosa and avoiding unnecessary biopsies is needed.AIM To examine the clinical utility of narrow band imaging(NBI) for evaluating duodenal villous morphology.METHODS We performed a prospective cohort study of adult patients at Mayo Clinic Rochester from 2013-2014 who were referred for EGD with duodenal biopsies. A staff endoscopist scored, in real-time, the NBI-based appearance of duodenal villi into one of three categories(normal, partial villous atrophy, or complete villous atrophy), captured ≥ 2 representative duodenal NBI images, and obtained mucosal biopsies therein. Images were then scored by an advanced endoscopist and gastroenterology fellow, and biopsies(gold standard) by a pathologist, in a masked fashion using the same three-category classification. Performing endoscopist, advanced endoscopist, and fellow NBI scores were compared to histopathology to calculate performance characteristics [sensitivity, specificity,positive and negative, negative predictive value(NPV), and accuracy]. Inter-rater agreement was assessed with Cohen's kappa.RESULTS112 patients were included. The most common referring indications were dyspepsia(47%), nausea(23%), and suspected celiac disease(14%). Duodenal histopathology scores were: 84% normal, 11% partial atrophy, and 5% complete atrophy. Performing endoscopist NBI scores were 79% normal, 14% partial atrophy, and 6% complete atrophy compared to 91%, 5%, and 4% and 70%, 24%,and 6% for advanced endoscopist and fellow, respectively. NBI performed favorably for all raters, with a notably high(92%-100%) NPV. NBI score agreement was best between performing endoscopist and fellow(κ = 0.65).CONCLUSION NBI facilitates accurate, non-invasive evaluation of duodenal villi. Its high NPV renders it especially useful for foregoing biopsies of histopathologically normal duodenal mucosa.