Choosing Wisely in Gastroenterology: five new recommendations from the Italian Association of Hospital Gastroenterologists and Endoscopists (AIGO).

BACKGROUND: 'Choosing Wisely' is an international campaign against inappropriateness in medical practices that aims to promote a rational and evidence-based use of resources. The Italian Association of Hospital Gastroenterologists and Endoscopists (AIGO) joined the Campaign in 2017 releasing five recommendations. AIMS: To identify five new recommendations for a correct, evidence-based approach to the management of gastrointestinal diseases. METHODS: All AIGO members were asked to identify practices or interventions that, even though diffuse in clinical practice, do not provide benefit for patients. The proposed items were then revised, divided by topic and ranked. After a systematic review of the literature for each item, five new recommendations were identified. RESULTS: The five recommendations are: do not request surveillance investigations for patients with pancreatic cysts who are poor surgical candidates, irrespective of cysts nature and characteristics; do not request esophagogastroduodenoscopy in patients with recent onset of upper gastrointestinal symptoms younger than 50 years, without alarm features; do not request surveillance colonoscopy for asymptomatic colonic diverticular disease without changes in symptoms; do not perform food intolerance tests except for those scientifically validated; do not prescribe proton pump inhibitors to patients with liver cirrhosis, outside of established indications. CONCLUSION: The Choosing Wisely recommendations will reduce unnecessary testing and treatments, increasing patient safety and overall healthcare quality.

Eosinophilic esophagitis: from pathophysiology to management.

Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) incidence and prevalence have sharply increased in the last decade; so, the management of these patients is changing rapidly. Standard regimens as elimination diet, proton pump inhibitors and topical swallowed steroids are not able to achieve remission in all patients. Moreover, loss of efficacy and safety concerns for long-term medical treatments are rising questions. As for other chronic immune-mediated diseases, biologics have been evaluated for the treatment of EoE. Several targets in the Th2-mediated inflammatory cascade with eosinophilic mucosal infiltration, have been tested with alternating results. This review provides a comprehensive discussion of the available studies evaluating biologics in EoE and the possible future options most desirable for these patients.

Outcomes of biliopancreatic EUS in patients with surgically altered upper gastrointestinal anatomy: a multicenter study.

Background and study aims Little is known about outcomes of biliopancreatic endosonography (EUS) in patients with surgically altered upper gastrointestinal (gastrointestinal) anatomy. We aimed to assess the rate of procedural success and EUS-related adverse events (AEs), according to post-surgical anatomies. Patients and methods Retrospective study including patients with post-surgical altered upper gastrointestinal anatomy who underwent EUS for evaluation of the biliopancreatic region between January 2008 and June 2018 at eight European centers. Results Of 242 patients (162 males, mean age 66.4 ±â€Š12.5), 86 had (35.5 %) Billroth II, 77 (31.8 %) pancreaticoduodenectomy, 23 (9.5 %) Billroth I, 19 (7.9 %) distal esophagectomy, 15 (6.2 %) total gastrectomy, 14 (5.8 %) sleeve gastrectomy, and eight (3.3 %) Roux-en-Y. Sleeve gastrectomy, Billroth I, and pancreaticoduodenectomy were associated with high rates of success (100 %, 95.7 %, and 92.2 %, respectively). Visualization of the head of the pancreas was significantly impacted by total gastrectomy, Billroth II, and Roux-en-Y (success rates 6.7 %, 53.7 %, and 57.1 %, respectively). Examination of the pancreatic body and tail was impaired in esophagectomy and total gastrectomy (82.4 % and 71.4 %, respectively). Technical success and diagnostic accuracy of EUS-guided tissue acquisition (EUS-TA) was 78.2 % and 71.3 % (95 % CI, 60.6-80.5), respectively. Four (1.6 %) AEs were observed: one mucosal tearing in a Billroth II patient, one cardiac arrest in a distal esophagectomy patient, one bleed after EUS-TA in a Billroth I patient, and one acute pancreatitis after EUS-TA in a sleeve gastrectomy patient. Conclusions The yield of bilio-pancreatic EUS is dependent on lesion location and surgery type. Before considering EUS in these patients, one must carefully consider whether the lesion may be approachable by EUS.

Multicentric Italian survey on daily practice for autoimmune pancreatitis: Clinical data, diagnosis, treatment, and evolution toward pancreatic insufficiency.

BACKGROUND: Autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) is a rare, and relatively new, form of chronic pancreatitis. The management of AIP can vary considerably among different centres in daily clinical practice. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to present a picture of epidemiological, clinical characteristics, outcomes, and the real-life practice in terms of management in several academic and non-academic centres in Italy. METHODS: Data on the clinical presentation, diagnostic work-up, treatments, frequency of relapses, and long-term outcomes were retrospectively collected in a cohort of AIP patients diagnosed at 14 centres in Italy. RESULTS: One hundred and six patients were classified as type 1 AIP, 48 as type 2 AIP, and 19 as not otherwise specified. Epidemiological, clinical, radiological, and serological characteristics, and relapses were similar to those previously reported for different types of AIP. Endoscopic cytohistology was available in 46.2% of cases, and diagnostic for AIP in only 35.2%. Steroid trial to aid diagnosis was administered in 43.3% cases, and effective in 93.3%. Steroid therapy was used in 70.5% of cases, and effective in 92.6% of patients. Maintenance therapy with low dose of steroid (MST) was prescribed in 25.4% of cases at a mean dose of 5 (±1.4) mg/die, and median time of MST was 60 days. Immunosuppressive drugs were rarely used (10.9%), and rituximab in 1.7%. Faecal elastase-1 was evaluated in only 31.2% of patients, and was pathological in 59.2%. CONCLUSIONS: In this cohort of AIP patients, diagnosis and classification for subtype was frequently possible, confirming the different characteristics of AIP1 and AIP2 previously reported. Nevertheless, we observed a low use of histology and steroid trial for a diagnosis of AIP. Steroid treatment was the most used therapy in our cohort. Immunosuppressants and rituximab were rarely used. The evaluation of exocrine pancreatic insufficiency is underemployed considering its high prevalence.

Updates in the field of non-esophageal gastroesophageal reflux disorder.

Introduction: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is one of the most prevalent conditions in Western Countries, normally presenting with heartburn and regurgitation. Extra-esophageal (EE) GERD manifestations, such as asthma, laryngitis, chronic cough and dental erosion, represent the most challenging aspects from diagnostic and therapeutic points of view because of their multifactorial pathogenesis and low response to proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). In fact, in the case of EE, other causes must by preventively excluded, but instrumental methods, such as upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and laryngoscopy, have low specificity and sensitivity as diagnostic tools. In the absence of alarm signs and symptoms, empirical therapy with a double-dose of PPIs is recommended as a first diagnostic approach. Subsequently, impedance-pH monitoring could help to define whether the symptoms are GERD-related. Areas covered: This article reviews the current literature regarding established and proposed EE-GERD, reporting on all available options for its correct diagnosis and therapeutic management. Expert opinion: MII-pH could help to identify a hidden GERD that causes EE. Unfortunately, standard MII-pH analysis results are often unable to define this association. New parameters such as the mean nocturnal baseline impedance and post-reflux swallow-induced peristaltic wave index may have an improved diagnostic yield, but prospective studies using impedance-pH are needed.