[Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease-update 2021]. / Gastroösophageale Refluxkrankheit ­ Update 2021.

Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD), a highly prevalent disease, is defined by troublesome symptoms and/or oesophageal lesions caused by reflux of gastric content. A diagnostic gold standard does not exist. A reliable diagnosis may be difficult in individual cases. Patients' history, endoscopic findings and pH-impedance monitoring contribute to the evaluation of gastro-oesophageal reflux and its consequences. High-resolution manometry may add important information on the pathophysiology of the disease and may help to rule out motility disorders as the leading cause of the symptoms. Proton pump inhibitors (PPI) are the drugs of first choice. In patients with insufficient PPI response, optimization of PPI therapy and/or combination with drugs having another mechanism of action are the available options. If PPIs are not sufficiently effective, not tolerated, or not wished antireflux procedures may be offered in specialized centers taking pathophysiological data into account.

[EndoStim® treatment-a new minimally invasive technology in antireflux surgery]. / EndoStim®-Therapie ­ eine neue minimal-invasive Technologie in der Antirefluxchirurgie.

BACKGROUND: The symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are very common. Despite the fact that 40% of patients continue to suffer under conservative treatment, only approximately 1% of affected patients are operated on in Germany. Until recently, antireflux surgery was performed nearly exclusively in the form of a Nissen fundoplication or a Toupet hemifundoplication. These methods are still considered the gold standard. A new surgical minimally invasive procedure is described which treats reflux symptoms through electrical neuromodulation of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). METHOD: An electrical neuromodulator for the LES (EndoStim®, EndoStim BV, Nijmegen, The Netherlands) is implanted into the abdominal wall as a pulse generator (IPG) and connected via an electrode cable to a pair of electrodes on the lower esophageal sphincter. In our own setting, patients are selected for this procedure after extensive functional diagnostics in the context of an interdisciplinary expert conference. The patient selection, patient education, required surgical training, surgical technique, postoperative phase as well as the results, complications and side effects are described. CONCLUSION: Electrical neuromodulation is a technique that successfully provides patients with GERD with control of their reflux symptoms. The technique requires interdisciplinary patient selection, comprehensive patient education, and comprehensive surgical training. The method is not free of postoperative problems. The electrical neuromodulation of the LES should therefore be used especially in centers with high expertise in reflux therapy.

[Gastroenterological diseases as triggers of chest pain]. / Gastroenterologische Erkrankungen als Auslöser von Thoraxschmerz.

BACKGROUND: Non-cardiac chest pain is very common and gastroenterological diseases are one of the most important causes. The frequency distribution of the underlying causes depends on the sector of the healthcare system in which it is ascertained. In individual cases it must always be taken into consideration that detection of coronary heart disease, for example, does not exclude another origin of chest pain. OBJECTIVE: This article provides a systematic review of gastroenterological diseases that can cause chest pain. Furthermore, a management algorithm was developed. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This article is based on a selective search of the literature. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The most frequent cause is gastroesophageal reflux disease, which is also known as reflux-chest pain syndrome. If there are no clinical alarm signals, treatment is carried out with a proton pump inhibitor either as a diagnostic test or as a probatory therapy. If this initial management does not lead to satisfactory symptom control, extended diagnostics are indicated. In individual cases this concerns the detection or exclusion of a reflux disease, of motility disorders and structural damage to the esophagus as well as diseases of the upper abdominal organs, which can evoke chest pain. After exclusion of these morphologically and/or functionally defined diseases, a so-called functional chest pain is present. The essential mechanisms are altered pain processing, esophageal hypersensitivity and mental comorbidities. The treatment of functional chest pain often proves to be difficult.

[Barrett's esophagus]. / Barrett-Ösophagus.

Barrett's esophagus is an endoscopically visible metaplasia of the columnar epithelium in the esophagus with histological detection of a specialized intestinal metaplasia. The circumferential and longitudinal extent are described endoscopically using the Prague classification. Barrett's esophagus mostly occurs as the result of gastroesophageal reflux disease. The risk of developing esophageal adenocarcinoma is increased but the absolute risk is low with 0.10-0.15 % per year. According to guideline recommendations, screening for Barrett's esophagus as well as endoscopic and biopsy surveillance should be limited to high risk groups. On detection of intraepithelial neoplasia (IEN) endoscopic therapy is indicated, whereby a second opinion must be obtained from a specialized pathologist for low-grade IEN. The influence of proton pump inhibitors on the progression to carcinoma is controversially discussed and a preventive anti-reflux operation is not indicated.

[Diagnostic and therapeutic management of helicobacter pylori: a survey among German gastroenterologists in private practice]. / Diagnostisches und therapeutisches Management der Helicobacter-pylori-Infektion: eine Umfrage unter niedergelassener Gastroenterologen in Deutschland.

Purpose: The acceptance and realization of clinical guidelines in daily routine practice is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the behaviour of private gastroenterologists in Germany with respect to the diagnostic and therapeutic management of H. pylori infection in times of increasing antibiotic resistance. Methods: Between 12/2014 and 02/2015 a standardized questionnaire with 19 multiple choice questions were sent to 1507 private gastroenterologists in Germany. The data were electronically captured and analyzed using SurveyMonkey. Results: The response rate was 36 % (540 questionnaires). 65 % of responders prescribe first line therapy by themselves and mainly use standard triple therapies. In patients with intolerance to penicillin, 81 % prescribe Italian triple therapy and 19 % prescribe bismuth quadruple therapy. Risk factors for primary clarithromycin resistance (migrational background, previous macrolide exposure) are routinely assessed by only a minority of responders (22 % and 17 %, respectively). Forty-one percent of responders perform eradication control by themselves mainly using a 13C urea breath test (54 %). In second line therapy, 42 % are prescribing bismuth quadruple therapy and 24 % fluoroquinolone triple therapy. After second line therapy, 58 % of responders are performing eradication control by themselves. Of those, 70 % always take biopsies for antibiotic susceptibility testing. Conclusions: The results of our survey suggest that most private gastroenterologists in Germany adhere to current guidelines for H. pylori management; however, some relevant deviations seem to exist. Our data might be useful for further developments of clinical guidelines and their communication among the medical community.

[Bleeding in patients receiving dual antiplatelet therapy after acute coronary syndrome - significance, prevention and interdisciplinary management]. / Interdisziplinäres Management von Blutungen unter dualer antithrombozytärer Therapie nach akutem Koronarsyndrom.

For secondary prevention of acute coronary syndrome, guidelines recommend dual antiplatelet therapy with acetylsalicylic acid and a P2Y12 receptor antagonist such as clopidogrel, prasugrel or ticagrelor for a period of 12 months. Premature discontinuation of dual antiplatelet therapy is associated with an increased risk of ischaemic events. However, antiplatelet therapy is also associated with an increased risk of bleeding that should not be under- or overestimated. To ensure an optimal care of patients receiving dual antiplatelet therapy after an acute coronary syndrome, an interdisciplinary group of experienced experts in the fields of cardiology, cardiac surgery, gastroenterology, anaesthesiology, intensive care and haemostaseology gathered bleeding-related information and developed recommendations relevant to daily clinical practice. These include the significance of bleeding events in the course of treatment, measures for bleeding prevention and the adequate care of patients with bleedings.

[S2k-guideline Helicobacter pylori and gastroduodenal ulcer disease]. / S2k-Leitlinie Helicobacter pylori und gastroduodenale Ulkuskrankheit.

In the line "bismuth-containing quadruple therapy" of Table 7 (p 342), in the column "dosage" incorrectly at the three antibiotics respectively 1-1-1-1. The correct is: 3-3-3-3.

[Direct oral anticoagulation and gastrointestinal bleeding: Interventional therapy management]. / Direkt wirkende orale Antikoagulanzien bei gastrointestinaler Blutung : Interventionelles Therapiemanagement.

BACKGROUND: More and more patients are being treated with direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC). Under treatment with DOACs gastrointestinal bleeding appears to occur more frequently, particularly in the lower gastrointestinal tract, compared to treatment with vitamin K antagonists (e.g. warfarin). OBJECTIVE: A possible approach should now be elaborated in a joint effort by gastroenterologists and cardiologists. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A selective literatue search was carried out and own experiences were also included. RESULTS: The decision to perform procoagulant therapy by slowly injecting 30-50 IU prothrombin complex concentrate (PPSB) per kg body weight intravenously depends on various factors and should be assessed critically. Specific antidotes are awaiting approval. After a bleeding episode potentially controllable and reversible triggers must be excluded (e.g. drug interactions and renal impairment). The risk of recurrent bleeding and the risk of thromboembolic events have to be weighed against each other before deciding to readminister an anticoagulant and its form. Dose reduction and changing to apixaban (in reduced dosage) are options for risk reduction and vitamin K antagonists can also be considered. DISCUSSION: It is still unclear what role specific antidotes will play.