Role of prophylactic antibiotics in cirrhotic patients with variceal bleeding

Bacterial infections are common in cirrhotic patients with acute variceal bleeding,occurring in 20%within48 h.Outcomes including early rebleeding and failure to control bleeding are strongly associated with bacterial infection.However,mortality from variceal bleeding is largely determined by the severity of liver disease.Besides a higher Child-Pugh score,patients with hepatocellular carcinoma are particularly susceptible to infections.Despite several hypotheses that include increased use of instruments,greater risk of aspiration pneumonia and higher bacterial translocation,it remains debatable whether variceal bleeding results in infection or vice versa but studies suggest that antibiotic prophylaxis prior to endoscopy and up to 8 h is useful in reducing bacteremia and spontaneous bacterial peritonitis.Aerobic gram negative bacilli of enteric origin are most commonly isolated from cultures,but more recently,gram positives and quinolone-resistant organisms are increasingly seen,even though their clinical significance is unclear.Fluoroquinolones(including ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin)used for short term(7 d)have the most robust evidence and are recommended in most expert guidelines.Short term intravenous cephalosporin(especially ceftriaxone),given in a hospital setting with prevalent quinolone-resistant organisms,has been shown in studies to be beneficial,particularly in high risk patients with advanced cirrhosis.

Non-small-bowel lesions encountered during double-balloon enteroscopy performed for obscure gastrointestinal bleeding

AIM:To report the incidence of non-small-bowel bleeding pathologies encountered during double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE) procedures and to analyse their significance.METHODS: A retrospective study of a prospective DBE database conducted in a tertiary-referral center was conducted. A total of 179 patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) referred for DBE from June 2004 to November 2008 were analysed looking for the incidence of non-small-bowel lesions (NSBLs; all and newly diagnosed) encountered during DBE.RESULTS: There were 228 (150 antegrade and 78 retrograde) DBE procedures performed in 179 patients. The mean number of DBE procedures was 1.27 per patient. The mean age (SD) of the patients was 62 ± 16 years old. There were 94 females (52.5%). The positive yield for a bleeding lesion was 65.9%. Of the 179 patients, 44 (24.6%) had NSBLs (19 of them had dual pathology with small-bowel lesions and NSBLs); 27 (15.1%) had lesions not detected by previous endoscopies. The most common type of missed lesions were vascular lesions.CONCLUSION: A significant proportion of patients (24.6%) had lesions within reach of conventional endoscopy. Careful repeat examination with gastroscopy and colonoscopy might be required.

Prospective randomized controlled trial evaluating cap-assisted colonoscopy vs standard colonoscopy

AIM: To study the significance of cap-fitted colonoscopy in improving cecal intubation time and polyp detection rate. METHODS: This study was a prospective randomized controlled trial conducted from March 2008 to February 2009 in a tertiary referral hospital at Sydney. The primary end point was cecal intubation time and the secondary endpoint was polyp detection rate. Consecutive cases of total colonoscopy over a 1-year period were recruited. Randomization into either standard colonoscopy (SC) or cap-assisted colonoscopy (CAC) was performed after consent was obtained. For cases randomized to CAC, one of the three sizes of cap was used: D-201-15004 (with a diameter of 15.3 mm), D-201-14304 (14.6 mm) and D-201-12704 (13.0 mm). All of these caps were produced by Olympus Medical Systems, Japan. Independent predictors for faster cecal time and better polyp detection rate were also determined from this study. RESULTS: There were 200 cases in each group. There was no signif icant difference in terms of demographic characteristics between the two groups. CAC, when compared to the SC group, had no signif icant difference in terms of cecal intubation rate (96.0% vs 97.0%, P = 0.40) and time (9.94 ± 7.05 min vs 10.34 ± 6.82 min, P = 0.21), or polyp detection rate (32.8% vs 31.3%, P = 0.75). On the subgroup analysis, there was no significant difference in terms of cecal intubation time by trainees (88.1% vs 84.8%, P = 0.40), ileal intubation rate (82.5% vs 79.0%, P = 0.38) or total colonoscopy time (23.24 ± 13.95 min vs 22.56 ± 9.94 min, P = 0.88). On multivariate analysis, the independent determinants of faster cecal time were consultant-performed procedures (P < 0.001), male patients (P < 0.001), non-usage of hyoscine (P < 0.001) and better bowel preparation (P = 0.01). The determinants of better polyp detection rate were older age (P < 0.001), no history of previous abdominal surgery (P = 0.04), patients not having esophagogastroduodenoscopy in the same setting (P = 0.003), trainee-performed procedures (P = 0.01), usage of hyoscine (P = 0.01) and procedures performed for polyp follow-up (P = 0.01). The limitations of the study were that it was a single-center experience, no blinding was possible, and there were a large number of endoscopists. CONCLUSION: CAC did not signif icantly different from SC in term of cecal intubation time and polyp detection rate.

Placement of removable metal biliary stent in post-orthotopic liver transplantation anastomotic stricture

Postoperative biliary strictures are the most common cause of benign biliary stricture in Western countries, secondary to either operative injury or bile duct anastomotic stricture following orthotopic liver transplantation(OLT).Surgery or endoscopic interventions are the mainstay of treatment for benign biliary strictures.We aim to report the outcome of 2 patients with refractory anastomotic biliary stricture post-OLT,who had successful temporary placement of a prototype removable covered self-expandable metal stent(RCSEMS).These 2 patients(both men,aged 44 and 53 years)were given temporary placement of a prototype RCSEMS (8.5 Fr gauge delivery system,8 mm×40 mm stent dimensions)in the common bile duct across the biliary stricture.There was no morbidity associated with stent placement and removal in these 2 cases.Clinical parameters improved after the RCSEMS placement.Longterm biliary patency was achieved in both the patients. No further biliary intervention was required within 14 and 18 mo follow-up after stent removal.

为双汽球 enteroscopy 的学习曲线: 从 282 过程的分析的调查结果

AIM: To determine the learning curves for antegrade double-balloon enteroscopy (aDBE) and retrograde DBE (rDBE) by analyzing the technical success rates. METHODS: A retrospective analysis in a tertiary referral center. This study reviewed all cases from June 2006 to April 2011 with a target lesion in the small-bowel identified by either capsule endoscopy or computed tomography scan posted for DBE examinations. Main outcome measurements were: (1) Technical success of aDBE def ined by f inding or excluding a target lesion after achieving suff icient length of small bowel intubation; and (2) Technical success for rDBE was def ined by either f inding the target lesion or achieving stable overtube placement in the ileum. RESULTS: Two hundred and eighty two procedures fulf illed the inclusion criteria and were analyzed. These procedures were analyzed by blocks of 30 cases. Therewas no distinct learning curve for aDBE. Technical success rates for rDBE continued to rise over time, although on logistic regression analysis testing for trend, there was no signif icance (P = 0.09). The odds of success increased by a factor of 1.73 (95% CI: 0.93-3.22) for rDBE. For these data, it was estimated that at least 30-35 cases of rDBE under supervision were needed to achieve a good technical success of more than 75%. CONCLUSION: There was no learning curve for aDBE. Technical success continued to increase over time for rDBE, although a learning curve could not be proven statistically. Approximately 30-35 cases of rDBE will be required for stable overtube intubation in ileum.