Retrospective comparison of G-EYE balloon-colonoscopy with standard colonoscopy for increased adenoma detection rate and reduced polyp removal time.

Background and study aims The newly introduced G-EYE colonoscope (G-EYE) employs a balloon, installed at the bending section of a standard colonoscope (SC), for increasing adenoma detection and stabilizing the colonoscope tip during intervention. This retrospective work explores the effect of introducing G-EYE into an SC endoscopy room, in terms of adenoma detection and polyp removal time. Patients and methods This was a single-center, retrospective study. Historical data from patients who underwent colonoscopy prior to, and following, introduction of G-EYE into a particular endoscopy room were collected and analyzed to determine adenoma detection rate (ADR), adenoma per patient (APP), and polyp removal time (PRT), in each of the SC and G-EYE groups. Results Records of 1362 patients who underwent SC and 1433 subsequent patients who underwent G-EYE colonoscopy in the same endoscopy unit by the same endoscopists were analyzed. Following G-EYE introduction, overall ADR increased by 37.5 % ( P  < 0.0001) from 39.2 % to 53.9 %, the serrated adenoma rate increased by 47.3 % from 27.9 % to 41.1 % ( P  < 0.0001), and the APP increased by 50.6 % from 0.79 to 1.19 ( P  < 0.0001). The number of advanced adenomas increased by 32.7 %, from 19.6 % to 26.0 % of all adenomas ( P  < 0.0001). With G-EYE, average PRT was reduced overall by 29.5 % ( P  < 0.0001), and particularly for endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) by 37.5 % for polyps measuring ≥ 5 mm to ≤ 20 mm ( P  < 0.0001) and by 29.4 % for large polyps > 20 mm ( P  < 0.0001). Conclusions Introduction of G-EYE to an SC endoscopy room yielded considerable increase in ADR and notable reduction in PRT, particularly with the EMR technique. G-EYE balloon colonoscopy might increase the effectiveness of colorectal cancer screening and surveillance colonoscopy, and can shorten the time of endoscopic intervention.

G-EYE colonoscopy is superior to standard colonoscopy for increasing adenoma detection rate: an international randomized controlled trial (with videos).

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is largely preventable with routine screening and surveillance colonoscopy; however, interval cancers arising from precancerous lesions missed by standard colonoscopy still occur. An increased adenoma detection rate (ADR) has been found to be inversely associated with interval cancers. The G-EYE device includes a reusable balloon integrated at the distal tip of a standard colonoscope, which flattens haustral folds, centralizes the colonoscope's optics, and reduces bowel slippage. The insufflated balloon also aims to enhance visualization of the colon during withdrawal, thereby increasing the ADR. METHODS: In this randomized, controlled, international, multicenter study (11 centers), patients (aged ≥50 years) referred to colonoscopy for screening, surveillance, or changes in bowel habits were randomized to undergo either balloon-assisted colonoscopy by using an insufflated balloon during withdrawal or standard high-definition colonoscopy. The primary endpoint was the ADR. RESULTS: One thousand patients were enrolled between May 2014 and September 2016 to undergo colonoscopy by experienced endoscopists; 803 were finally analyzed (standard colonoscopy n = 396; balloon-assisted colonoscopy n = 407). Baseline parameters were similar in both groups. Balloon-assisted colonoscopy provided a 48.0% ADR compared with 37.5% in the standard colonoscopy group (28% increase; P = .0027). Additionally, balloon-assisted colonoscopy provided for a significant increase in detection of advanced (P = .0033) flat adenomas (P < .0001) and sessile serrated adenomas/polyps (P = .0026). CONCLUSION: Balloon-assisted colonoscopy yielded a higher ADR and increased the detection of advanced, flat, and sessile serrated adenomas/polyps when compared with standard colonoscopy. Improved detection by the G-EYE device could impact the quality of CRC screening by reducing miss rates and consequently reducing interval cancer incidence. (Clinical trial registration number: NCT01917513.).

G-EYE advanced colonoscopy for improved polyp detection rates - a randomized tandem pilot study with different endoscopists.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The most commonly missed polyps in colonoscopy are those located behind haustral folds. The G-EYE system is a standard colonoscope consisting of re-processable balloon at its distal tip. The G-EYE balloon improves the detection of polyps by straightening the haustral folds. In our back-to-back tandem study, we aimed to determine whether and to what extent the G-EYE system could reduce adenoma miss rates in screening colonoscopy. METHODS: Patients referred to colonoscopy were randomized into 2 groups. Group A underwent a standard colonoscopy (SC) followed by balloon colonoscopy (BC), and Group B underwent BC followed by SC. In this randomized tandem study, the investigator's level of training and the endoscopists themselves were changed after each withdrawal. Each endoscopist was blinded to the results of the first withdrawal. RESULTS: Fifty-eight patients were enrolled and randomized into 2 groups with similar baseline characteristics. Nine patients were excluded from the study. Twenty-five patients underwent SC followed by BC while 24 underwent BC followed by SC. The adenoma miss rate for SC was 41 %, with an additional detection rate of 69 % for BC (ratio 1.69). The overall miss rate for polyps was 60 % for SC, with an additional detection rate of 150 % for BC (ratio 2.5). Experienced investigators who used BC were able to identify an additional 7 polyps while inexperienced investigators. CONCLUSIONS: Although our results could not clearly confirm that BC improves adenoma detection, the investigator's experience appears to be a major determinant of the adenoma detection rate.

[Rare gastroenterologic finding as a cause of hypochromic microcytic anemia]. / Seltener gastroenterologischer Befund als Ursache für eine hypochrome mikrozytäre Anämie.

CASE HISTORY: A 66-year-old woman suffering from skin paleness and weakness presented an increasing hypochromic, microcytic anemia. Diagnostic: In an ambulant setting a capsule endoscopy of the small intestine was carried out because of multiple polyps of the colon (colonoscopy) in addition to non-invasive (Hämoccult-Test) and invasive (gastroscopy) diagnostic. The patient was then admitted to hospital to clarify a suspicious ulcer of the small bowl. According to biopsies taken via balloon enteroscopy, an adenocarcinoma of the small intestine was diagnosed. THERAPY AND CLINICAL COURSE: After staging and exploratory laparotomy, histology findings showed an advanced tumour stage. A palliative chemotherapy, analogue to colon cancer treatment, was conducted. CONCLUSION: Small bowel diagnostics should be carried out if the aetiology of an anemia is not certain with an existing polyposis of the colon. Individuals with personal or family history of cumulative colorectal adenomas should undergo assessment for an adenomatous polyposis syndrom.

Acute gastrointestinal bleeding - a new approach to clinical and endoscopic management.

Overt or occult gastrointestinal bleeding is a frequently observed condition in routine gastroenterological practice. Occult gastrointestinal bleeding is usually a purely incidental finding, based on the discovery of iron deficiency anemia in the laboratory or blood in stool (a positive Hemoccult test). However, overt bleeding accompanied by the clinical features of tarry stool, hematemesis, or hematochezia may be a life-threatening condition, calling for immediate emergency management. In contrast to traumatology, algorithms of emergency and intensive medicine are not sufficiently validated yet for acute life-threatening bleeding. The purpose of this review was to present all established and new endoscopic hemostasis techniques and to evaluate their efficacy, as well as to provide the treating endoscopist with practical advice on how he/she could incorporate these procedures into acute medical management. The recommendations are based on inspection of the study results in the recent published literature, as well as emergency medicine algorithms in traumatology.

Beyond standard image-enhanced endoscopy confocal endomicroscopy.

Endomicroscopy is a new imaging tool for gastrointestinal endoscopy. In vivo histology becomes possible at subcellular resolution during ongoing colonoscopy. Panchromoendoscopy with targeted biopsies has become the method of choice for surveillance of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Endomicroscopy can be added after chromoendoscopy to clarify whether standard biopsies are needed. This smart biopsy concept can increase the diagnostic yield of intraepithelial neoplasia and substantially reduce the need for biopsies. Clinical acceptance is increasing because of a multitude of positive studies about the diagnostic value of endomicroscopy. Smart biopsies, functional imaging, and molecular imaging may represent the future for endomicroscopy.

Competition in Colon Cancer Screening? What Is the Role of Colonoscopy?

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the leading causes of cancer-related death in the Western world. The incidence could be reduced if this cancer were to be diagnosed at an early stage of disease. A competition has started between the existing screening methods to be the most efficient in detecting premalignant conditions. This review illustrates the current state of screening techniques for CRC. METHOD: Pubmed was searched for meta-analyses and prospective studies on screening for CRC, with an emphasis on colonography, computed tomographic colonography (CTC), magnetic resonance colonography (MRC), stool DNA testing, and colon capsule endoscopy, and critical appraisal of the research was done by the reviewers. RESULTS: The imaging techniques (CTC and MRC) had similar detection rates for bigger lesions (≥10 mm) as colonoscopy. High-definition colonoscopy showed better efficiency with smaller lesions. The techniques developing around colonoscopy such as the retro-viewing colonoscope, the balloon colonoscope, or the 330-degree viewing colonoscope try to enhance efficacy by reducing the adenoma miss rate in right-sided, non-polypoid lesions. Colon capsule endoscopy and the stool detection systems are limited to identifying cancer but not necessarily adenomas. CONCLUSION: Colonoscopy is the preferred CRC screening strategy and the undisputed gold standard in terms of efficacy.