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Background and Aims: Gastric variceal bleeding occurs less commonly than bleeding from esophageal varices (EVs), although it is associated with higher morbidity and mortality. Bleeding from gastroesophageal varices type 1 (GOV1) is treated like EVs. In contrast, other forms of gastric variceal bleeding, including gastroesophageal varices type 2 (GOV2) and isolated gastric varices types 1 (IGV1) and 2 (IGV2), are treated with varying endoscopic approaches. Nonendoscopic methods include transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) or balloon-occluded retrograde transvenous obliteration (BRTO). This technology report focuses on endoscopic management of gastric varices (GVs)., Methods: The MEDLINE database was searched through August 2022 for relevant articles by using key words such as gastric varices, glue, cyanoacrylate, thrombin, sclerosing agents, band ligation, topical hemostatic spray, coils, EUS, TIPS, and BRTO. The article was drafted, reviewed, and edited by the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) Technology Committee and approved by the Governing Board of the ASGE., Results: Endoscopic injection with cyanoacrylate (CYA) glue has been the primary endoscopic method to treat GVs. EUS-guided angiotherapy with CYA glue and coil embolization has emerged as an alternative method enabling improved detection of GVs with a high technical success for targeting and obliterating GVs. Combining CYA glue with coil therapy allows the coil to act as a scaffold for the glue, reducing the risk of glue embolization and improving outcomes. Alternative injectates or topical treatments have been described but remain poorly studied., Conclusions: The mainstay paradigm for the endoscopic management of gastric variceal bleeding is the injection of CYA glue. The published success of EUS-guided angiotherapy using CYA glue with or without embolization coils has increased our treatment armamentarium., Competing Interests: Disclosure The following authors disclosed financial relationships: G. Trikudanathan: Consultant for Boston Scientific Corporation. A. Bhatt: Consultant for Medtronic, Inc, US Endoscopy, Olympus Corporation, and Intuitive Surgical Inc; patent-holder for a commercial device licensed to Medtronic, Inc. V. Chandrasekhara: Consultant for Covidien LP and Boston Scientific Corporation; research support from Microtech Endoscopy; shareholder with Nevakar, Inc. A. Kahn: Consultant for MiMedx. K. Krishnan: Consultant for Boston Scientific Corporation and Olympus Corporation of the Americas. N. A. Kumta: Consultant for Apollo Endosurgery US Inc, Boston Scientific Corporation, Safeheal, and Olympus Corporation of the Americas. D. R. Lichtenstein: Consultant for Olympus Corporation of the Americas and Boston Scientific Corporation; speaker for Olympus Corporation of the Americas and Boston Scientific Corporation; Clinical Events Committee for Boston Scientific Corporation (chair) and SafeHeal; advisory board and research committee for Iterative Health; GI boards committee for the American Board of Internal Medicine. J. V. Obando: Shareholder with Surgenly LLC. R. Pannala: Consultant for HCL Technologies; scientific advisory board for Bluestar Genomics and Nestle HealthCare Nutrition Inc; research support from Erbe USA Inc; Medical Director (AZ Chapter) for the National Pancreas Foundation. M. Saumoy: Consultant for Becton, Dickinson and Company and Intuitive Surgical, Inc. A. J. Trindade: Consultant for Pentax of America, Inc, Boston Scientific Corporation, Lucid Diagnostics, and Exact Science. J. Yang: Consultant for Cook Medical, Interscope, and Steris. R. J. Law: Consultant for Conmed Corporation, Boston Scientific Corporation, Olympus America Inc, and Medtronic USA Inc; royalties from UpToDate. All other authors disclosed no financial relationships., (Copyright © 2024 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background & Aims: There is significant variability in the immediate post-operative and long-term management of patients undergoing per-oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM), largely stemming from the lack of high-quality evidence. We aimed to establish a consensus on several important questions on the after care of post-POEM patients through a modified Delphi process., Methods: A steering committee developed an initial questionnaire consisting of 5 domains (33 statements): post-POEM admission/discharge, indication for immediate post-POEM esophagram, peri-procedural medications and diet resumption, clinic follow-up recommendations, and post-POEM reflux surveillance and management. A total of 34 experts participated in the 2 rounds of the Delphi process, with quantitative and qualitative data analyzed for each round to achieve consensus., Results: A total of 23 statements achieved a high degree of consensus. Overall, the expert panel agreed on the following: (1) same-day discharge after POEM can be considered in select patients; (2) a single dose of prophylactic antibiotics may be as effective as a short course; (3) a modified diet can be advanced as tolerated; and (4) all patients should be followed in clinic and undergo objective testing for surveillance and management of reflux. Consensus could not be achieved on the indication of post-POEM esophagram to evaluate for leak., Conclusions: The results of this Delphi process established expert agreement on several important issues and provides practical guidance on key aspects in the care of patients following POEM., (Copyright © 2024 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background & Aims: Thermal treatment of the defect margin after endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) of large nonpedunculated colorectal lesions reduces the recurrence rate. Both snare tip soft coagulation (STSC) and argon plasma coagulation (APC) have been used for thermal margin treatment, but there are few data directly comparing STSC with APC for this indication., Methods: We performed a randomized 3-arm trial in 9 US centers comparing STSC with APC with no margin treatment (control) of defects after EMR of colorectal nonpedunculated lesions ≥15 mm. The primary end point was the presence of residual lesion at first follow-up., Results: There were 384 patients and 414 lesions randomized, and 308 patients (80.2%) with 328 lesions completed ≥1 follow-up. The proportion of lesions with residual polyp at first follow-up was 4.6% with STSC, 9.3% with APC, and 21.4% with control subjects (no margin treatment). The odds of residual polyp at first follow-up were lower for STSC and APC when compared with control subjects (P = .001 and P = .01, respectively). The difference in odds was not significant between STSC and APC. STSC took less time to apply than APC (median, 3.35 vs 4.08 minutes; P = .019). Adverse event rates were low, with no difference between arms., Conclusions: In a randomized trial STSC and APC were each superior to no thermal margin treatment after EMR. STSC was faster to apply than APC. Because STSC also results in lower cost and plastic waste than APC (APC requires an additional device), our study supports STSC as the preferred thermal margin treatment after colorectal EMR. (Clinicaltrials.gov, Number NCT03654209.)., (Copyright © 2024 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background and study aims The advantages of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) over endoscopic mucosal resection for large colorectal neoplasms are well established; however, the technical challenges and lack of adequate training in ESD limit its widespread adoption in Western countries. Methods A literature search was performed in Medline, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library for studies conducted in non-Asian countries evaluating the effectiveness of colorectal ESD. A random effects model was used to obtain pooled en bloc, R0 resection rates, and adverse events (AEs). Results Thirty-three studies comprising 3,958 ESD procedures met the inclusion criteria. Of the polyps, 96.7% (2,817 of 2913) were ≥ 2 cm. Pooled en bloc resection (31 studies), R0 resection (29 studies), and curative resection rates were 84.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] [83.3%-85.9%]), 75.6% (95% CI [74.1%-77.0%]), and 81.9% (95% CI [78.6%-84.9%]), respectively. Surgery for invasive cancer was performed in 4.8% (23 studies). ESD-related perforation (25 studies) was observed in 5.5% and bleeding in 4.1% (delayed bleeding 3.4%). 1.8% of patients underwent surgery for procedure-related complications. A high degree of heterogeneity was observed for en bloc resection, R0 resection, and curative resection. Heterogeneity for AEs (perforation [I 2 13%], delayed bleeding [I 2 30%], and overall bleeding [I 2 49%]) was low to moderate. Conclusions The effectiveness of colorectal ESD for large colorectal polyps and early colorectal cancers is improving in Western countries, and recent resection rates are comparable to that seen in Asia. Colorectal perforation is still observed in about 5% of ESD; however, < 2% of patients need emergency surgery for AEs., Competing Interests: Conflict of Interest Ritu R. Singh: No conflict of interest Julie Nanavati: No conflict of interest Harishankar Gopakumar: No conflict of interest Nikhil Kumta: Consultant for Apollo Endosurgery, Boston Scientific, and Olympus., (The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).)

Background: Delayed bleeding is among the most common adverse events associated with endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) of nonampullary duodenal polyps. We evaluated the rate of delayed bleeding and complete defect closure using a novel through-the-scope (TTS) suturing system for the closure of duodenal EMR defects., Methods: We reviewed the electronic medical records of patients who underwent EMR for nonampullary duodenal polyps of ≥ 10 mm and prophylactic defect closure with TTS suturing between March 2021 and May 2022 at centers in the USA. We evaluated the rates of delayed bleeding and complete defect closure., Results: 36 nonconsecutive patients (61 % women; mean [SD] age, 65 [12] years) underwent EMR of ≥ 10-mm duodenal polyps followed by attempted defect closure with TTS suturing. The mean (SD) lesion size was 29 (19) mm, defect size was 37 (25) mm; eight polyps (22 %) involved > 50 % of the lumen circumference. Complete closure was achieved in all cases (78 % with TTS suturing alone), using a median of one TTS suturing kit. There were no cases of delayed bleeding and no adverse events attributed to application of the TTS suturing device., Conclusion: Prophylactic closure of nonampullary duodenal EMR defects using TTS suturing resulted in a high rate of complete closure and no delayed bleeding events., Competing Interests: J. Cohen is a consultant for Olympus and Microtech, owns stock in GI windows and Romtech and is an owner of MD Medical Navigators. G.B. Haber has received consultancy and speakerʼs fees from Boston Scientific and Olympus, consultancy fees from Cook Medical, ERBE, OVESCO, and Endogastric Solutions; he is on the medical advisory boards of Covidien/ Medtronic, Microtech, and Aries Pharmaceutical for whom he is also a member of the speakersʼ bureau. A.C. Storm has received grants and consultancy fees from Apollo Endosurgery and Boston Scientific, grants from Endo-TAGSS, Endogenex, and Enterasense, and consultancy fees from ERBE, GI dynamics, and Olympus. S. Gordon has received consultancy fees from Boston Scientific. S. Singh has provided consultancy to Apollo Endosurgery. B. Qumseya has received consultancy fees from Medtronic and Assertio Management, and speaker's fees from Castle Biosciences. P.V. Draganov has provided consultancy to Boston Scientific, Cook Medical, Olympus, Lumendi, and Microtech. N.A. Kumta has provided consultancy to Apollo Endosurgery, Boston Scientific, Olympus, and SafeHeal. R. Kim has provided consultancy to Medtronic and Cook Medical. A. Hiroyuki has provided consultancy to Olympus America, Boston Scientific, and Fujifilm Medical Systems. S. Ngamruengphong has provided consultancy to Boston Scientific. M.A. Khashab has provided consultancy to Boston Scientific, Olympus America, Medtronic, Apollo Endosurgery, Pentax, and GI Supply. J.A. Almario, L.Y. Zhang, H. Ramberan, J.M. Adler, H. Pohl, A. Schlachtermann, A. Kumar, A. Canakis, and A. Shrigiriwar declare that they have no conflicts of interest., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

Background and Aims: Large colon polyps removed by EMR can be complicated by delayed bleeding. Prophylactic defect clip closure can reduce post-EMR bleeding. Larger defects can be challenging to close using through-the-scope clips (TTSCs), and proximal defects are difficult to reach using over-the-scope techniques. A novel, through-the-scope suturing (TTSS) device allows direct closure of mucosal defects without scope withdrawal. The goal of this study was to evaluate the rate of delayed bleeding after the closure of large colon polyp EMR sites with TTSS., Methods: A multicenter retrospective cohort study was performed involving 13 centers. All defect closure by TTSS after EMR of colon polyps ≥2 cm from January 2021 to February 2022 were included. The primary outcome was rate of delayed bleeding., Results: A total of 94 patients (52% female; mean age, 65 years) underwent EMR of predominantly right-sided (n = 62 [66%]) colon polyps (median size, 35 mm; interquartile range, 30-40 mm) followed by defect closure with TTSS during the study period. All defects were successfully closed with TTSS alone (n = 62 [66%]) or with TTSS and TTSCs (n = 32 [34%]), using a median of 1 (interquartile range, 1-1) TTSS system. Delayed bleeding occurred in 3 patients (3.2%), with 2 requiring repeated endoscopic evaluation/treatment (moderate)., Conclusion: TTSS alone or with TTSCs was effective in achieving complete closure of all post-EMR defects, despite a large lesion size. After TTSS closure with or without adjunctive devices, delayed bleeding was seen in 3.2% of cases. Further prospective studies are needed to validate these findings before wider adoption of TTSS for large polypectomy closure., (Copyright © 2023 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. All rights reserved.)

Background: Zenker's diverticulum peroral endoscopic myotomy (zPOEM) is a minimally invasive treatment strategy for Zenker's diverticulum, with excellent results for management of small-to-moderate Zenker's diverticulum. We evaluated its use in the management of large Zenker's diverticulum., Methods: This was a retrospective multicenter cohort study across 11 international centers including adult patients with large Zenker's diverticulum ≥ 40 mm treated by zPOEM between March 2017 and March 2022. The primary outcome was clinical success (dysphagia score ≤ 1 without need for further intervention). Secondary outcomes included technical success (complete myotomy as intended), adverse events (AEs), and rate of recurrence., Results: 83 patients (male 62.7 %, mean age 72.6 [SD 11.5] years) underwent zPOEM for treatment of large Zenker's diverticulum (median size 50 mm, interquartile range [IQR] 41-55 mm, range 40-80 mm). The zPOEM procedure was technically successful in 82 patients (98.8 %), with a mean procedure time of 48.7 (SD 23.2) minutes. Clinical success was achieved in 71 patients (85.5 %). Median (IQR) symptom scores improved significantly from baseline for dysphagia (2 2 3 vs. 0 [0-2]; P  < 0.001), regurgitation (3 2 3 4 vs. 0 [0-0]; P  < 0.001), and respiratory symptoms (2 [0-3] vs. 0 [0-0]; P  < 0.001). Among patients achieving clinical success, only one recurrence (1.4 %) was recorded during a median follow-up of 12.2 months (IQR 3-28). Post-procedure AEs, all mild to moderate, occurred in four patients (4.8 %)., Conclusion: This study demonstrated safe and effective use of zPOEM in the management of large Zenker's diverticulum., Competing Interests: J. Nieto is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Olympus, and ConMed. M. Ujiki is a board member for Boston Scientific, a consultant for Olympus and Cook, and has received grant funding from Medtronic and payments for lectures from Medtronic, Erbe, and Gore. R.E. Kim is a consultant for Medtronic and Cook Medical. N.A. Kumta is a consultant for Apollo Endosurgery, Boston Scientific, Olympus, Intuitive Surgical, and SafeHeal. M.A. Khashab is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Olympus America, Medtronic, Apollo Endosurgery, Pentax, and GI Supply; he also receives royalties from UpToDate and Elsevier. L.Y. Zhang, O. Hernandez Mondragon, M. Pioche, S.N. Steinway, V.N. VanDruff, A. Canakis, M. Tantau, A. Tantau, A. Pop, J. Jacques, M. Lajin, P. Desai, A. Shrigiriwar, and M. Bejjani declare that they have no conflict of interest., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

Background: Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) and transanal endoscopic microsurgery (TEM) are minimally invasive procedures that treat early rectal cancer (ERC). Both are effective treatments, yet there are very few studies comparing them. The aim of our study was to identify ideal candidates for each procedure., Materials and Methods: Between January 2016 and November 2019, 204 ERC patients were managed with either ESD (n=101) or TEM (n=103) at 7 international centers. Data analyzed included clinical success, tumor characteristics, procedure info, and recurrence rates., Results: Median tumor size was 40 mm±23.9 in the ESD group and 56 mm±27.9 in the TEM group, significantly larger in the latter ( P <0.00001). Average procedure time was 131.5±67.9 minutes in ESD group and 104.9±28.4 minutes in TEM group ( P =0.000347). Average hospital stay was 3.3±2.6 days in the ESD group and 4.7±0.7 days in the TEM group ( P <0.00001). Adverse event rate was 6.8% in the ESD group and 24% in the TEM group. There were no significant difference in the rate of en bloc resection, technical success, tumor location, necessity of additional procedures, and tumor recurrence rates., Conclusion: Compared with TEM, ESD is a safer procedure with shorter hospital stay and should be offered for patients who have ERC., (Copyright © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: The introduction of new technologies in endoscopy has been met with uncertainty, skepticism, and lack of standardization or training parameters, particularly when disruptive devices or techniques are involved. The widespread availability of a novel endoscopic suturing device (OverStitch™) for tissue apposition has enabled the development of applications of endoscopic suturing., Methods: The American Gastroenterological Association partnered with Apollo Endosurgery to develop a registry to capture in a pragmatic non-randomized study the safety, effectiveness, and durability of endoscopic suturing in approximating tissue in the setting of bariatric revision and fixation of endoprosthetic devices., Results: We highlight the challenges of the adoption of novel techniques by examining the process of developing and executing this multicenter registry to assess real-world use of this endoscopic suturing device. We also present our preliminary data on the safety and effectiveness of the novel device as it is applied in the treatment of obesity., Conclusions: The Prospective Registry for Trans-Orifice Endoscopic Suturing Applications (ES Registry) was an effective Phase 4, postmarketing registry aimed at capturing pragmatic, real-world use of a novel device. These findings serve to solidify the role of endoscopic suturing in clinical practice., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background and study aims  Endoscopic techniques are rapidly emerging for resection of subepithelial tumors (SETs). Submucosal tunneling for endoscopic resection (STER), endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR) and laparoscopic endoscopic cooperative surgery (LECS) are current alternatives to open surgery. In this study, we aimed to compare the three endoscopic techniques. Patients and methods  Consecutive patients who underwent resection of a submucosal esophageal or gastric lesion at several tertiary care centers were included in a dedicated registry over 3 years. Demographics, size and location of resected lesion, histology of specimen, length of procedure, adverse events (AEs), duration of hospital stay, and follow-up data were collected. Results  Ninety-six patients were included (47.7 % male, mean age 62): STER n = 34, EFTR n = 34, LECS n = 280. The lesions included leiomyoma, gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) and other. The mean lesion size was 28 mm (STD 16, range 20-72 mm). The majority of lesions in the EFTR and laparoscopic-assisted resection group were GISTs. There was no significant difference in clear resection margins, post-procedure complication rates, recurrence rate and total follow-up duration between the groups. However, the LECS group had a procedure time at least 30 minutes longer than STER or EFTR ( P  < 0.01). Total hospital stay for the laparoscopic-assisted resection group was also longer when compared to STER (1.5) and EFTR (1.8) ( P  < 0.01). Conclusions  STER, EFTR, and laparoscopic-assisted resection are efficacious approaches for resection of SETs with similar R0 resection rates, complication rates, and AE rates. Laparoscopic assisted resection appears more time-consuming and is associated with a longer hospital stay., Competing Interests: Competing interests Avik Sarkar has done consulting work for US Endoscopy and Obalon Therapeutics. Haroon Shahid has done consulting work for US Endoscopy. Amy Tyberg has done consulting work for NinePoint Medical, EndoGastric Solutions, and Obalon Therapeutics. Michel Kahaleh has done consulting work for Boston Scientific, Interscope Med, and Abbvie. He has received research grants from Boston Scientific, Emcision, Conmed, Pinnacle, Cook, Gore, Merit, and Olympus. Monica Gaidhane has done consulting for 3D Matrix, (The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).)

Background and study aims  Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a new technology available for evaluation of indeterminate biliary strictures. It allows under-the-surface visualization and preliminary studies have confirmed standardized characteristics associated with malignancy. The aim of this study is to evaluate the first interobserver agreement in identifying previously agreed upon OCT criteria and diagnosing of malignant versus benign disease. Patients and methods  Fourteen endoscopists were asked to review an atlas of reference clips and images of eight criteria derived from expert consensus A total of 35 de-identified video clips were then evaluated for presence of the eight criteria and for final diagnosis of malignant versus benign using the atlas as reference Intraclass correlation (ICC) analysis was done to evaluate interrater agreement. Results  Clips of 23 malignant lesions and 12 benign lesions were scored. Excellent interobserver agreement was seen with dilated hypo-reflective structures (0.85) and layering effacement (0.89); hyper-glandular mucosa (0.76), intact layering (0.81), and onion-skin layering (0.77); fair agreement was seen with scalloping (0.58), and thickened epithelium (0.4); poor agreement was seen with hyper-reflective surface (0.36). The diagnostic ICC for both neoplastic (0.8) and non-neoplastic (0.8) was excellent interobserver agreement. The overall diagnostic accuracy was 51 %, ranging from 43 % to 60 %. Conclusions  Biliary OCT is a promising new modality for evaluation of indeterminate biliary strictures. Interobserver agreement ranged from fair to almost perfect on eight previously identified criteria. Interobserver agreement for malignancy diagnosis was substantial (0.8). Further studies are needed to validate this data., Competing Interests: Competing interests Amy Tyberg: Consultant for Ninepoint Medical, Endogastric Solutions, Obalon Therapeutics. Avik Sarkar has done consulting work for US Endoscopy and Obalon Therapeutics. Haroon Shahid has done consulting work for US Endoscopy. Michel Kahaleh has received grants support from Boston Scientific, Fujinon, W.L. Gore, Apollo Endosurgery, Cook Endoscopy, GI Dynamics, Merit Medical, Interscope Med, Olympus, ERBE, and MI Tech. He is a consultant for Boston Scientific and Laboratories Inc., ABBvie. None of those funding was related to this paper., (The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).)

Background: Most studies on endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)-guided gastroenterostomy (EUS-GE) for palliation of malignant gastric outlet obstruction (GOO) utilized a 15-mm lumen-apposing metal stent (LAMS). More recently, a 20-mm LAMS has become available. This study aimed to compare rates of technical and clinical success and adverse events (AEs) in patients undergoing EUS-GE using a 20-mm vs. 15-mm LAMS., Methods: Patients who underwent EUS-GE with 15-mm or 20-mm LAMS for malignant GOO during the period from January 2018 to October 2020 were included. The primary outcome was clinical success, defined as an increase in the gastric outlet obstruction score (GOOS) by at least 1 point during follow-up. Secondary outcomes were technical success, maximum tolerated diet, re-intervention rate, and rate/severity of AEs., Results: 267 patients (mean age 67 years, 43 % women) with malignant GOO from 19 centers underwent EUS-GE. Clinical success rates were similar for the 15-mm and 20-mm stents (89.2 % [95 %CI 84.2 %-94.2 %] vs. 84.1 % [77.4%-90.6 %], respectively). However, a significantly higher proportion of patients in the 20-mm group tolerated a soft solid/complete diet at the end of follow-up (91.2 % [84.4 %-95.7 %] vs. 81.2 % [73.9 %-87.2 %], P  = 0.04). Overall, AEs occurred in 33 patients (12.4 % [8.4 %-16.3 %]), with similar rates for 15-mm and 20-mm stents (12.8 % [7.5 %-18.2 %] vs. 11.8 % [6 %-17.6 %]), including incidence of severe/fatal AEs (2 % [0.4 %-5.8 %] vs. 3.4 % [0.9 %-8.4 %])., Conclusions: The 20-mm and 15-mm LAMS show similar safety and efficacy for patients undergoing EUS-GE for malignant GOO. The 20-mm LAMS allows a more advanced diet and is, thus preferred for EUS-GE., Competing Interests: A. Anderloni is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Medtronic and Olympus. J.R. Aparicio is a consultant for Boston Scientific. J.M. Buscaglia is a consultant for Abbvie. B. Confer is a consultant for Boston Scientific. D.L. Diehl is a consultant for Boston Scientific. C.J. DiMaio is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Covidien, and SafeHeal; and a speaker for AbbVie, Mauna Kea, and STERIS. A. Fugazza is a consultant for Boston Scientific and Olympus. M.T. Huggett is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Olympus America, and Cook Medical. M.A. Khashab is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Olympus, Medtronic, GI Supply, MicroTech, and Apollo. H.S. Khara is a consultant for Boston Scientific. T.E. Kowalski is a consultant for Boston Scientific and Medtronic. N.A. Kumta is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Apollo Endosurgery, Intuitive Surgery, Medtronic, and Olympus. D. Loren is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Olympus, and Pinnacle Biologics; and receives research support from Medtronic. J.M. Nieto is a consultant for Boston Scientific. B. Paranandi is a consultant for Boston Scientific and Olympus America. K. D-C. Pham is a consultant for Boston Scientific; he is a speaker for Boston Scientific, Cook Medical, Olympus America and Taewoong Medical; and he is on on the advisory board of Ambu. D.K. Pleskow is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Olympus America, and FujiFilm. D.V. Sejpal is a consultant for Boston Scientific and Olympus America. R.Z. Sharaiha is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Cook Medical, Olympus, and Lumendi. A.J. Trindade is a consultant for Pentax Medical and Olympus America. R.R. Watson is a consultant for Boston Scientific. The remaining authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

Competing Interests: Disclosure The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Competing Interests: Nikhil A. Kumta is a consultant for Apollo Endosurgery, Boston Scientific, Intuitive Surgical, and Olympus.

Background and study aims  In patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), endoscopically visible lesions with distinct borders can be considered for endoscopic resection. The role of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for these lesions is not well defined because of a paucity of data. We aimed to evaluate the outcomes of colorectal ESD of dysplastic lesions in patients with IBD across centers in the United States. Patients and methods  This was a retrospective analysis of consecutive patients with IBD who were referred for ESD of dysplastic colorectal lesions at nine centers. The primary endpoints were the rates of en bloc resection and complete (R0) resection. The secondary endpoints were the rates of adverse events and lesion recurrence. Results  A total of 45 dysplastic lesions (median size 30mm, interquartile range [IQR] 23 to 42 mm) in 41 patients were included. Submucosal fibrosis was observed in 73 %. En bloc resection was achieved in 43 of 45 lesions (96 %) and R0 resection in 34 of 45 lesions (76 %). Intraprocedural perforation occurred in one patient (2.4 %) and was treated successfully with clip placement. Delayed bleeding occurred in four patients (9.8 %). No severe intraprocedural bleeding or delayed perforation occurred. During a median follow-up of 18 months (IQR 13 to 37 months), local recurrence occurred in one case (2.6 %). Metachronous lesions were identified in 11 patients (31 %). Conclusions  ESD, when performed by experts, is safe and effective for large, dysplastic colorectal lesions in patients with IBD. Despite the high prevalence of submucosal fibrosis, en bloc resection was achieved in nearly all patients with IBD undergoing ESD. Careful endoscopic surveillance is necessary to monitor for local recurrence and metachronous lesions after ESD., Competing Interests: Competing interests Dr. Kumta is a consultant for Apollo Endosurgery, Boston Scientific, and Olympus. Dr. Yang is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Lumendi and Steris. Dr. Draganov is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Lumendi, Cook, Olympus and Microtech. Dr. Ngamruengphong is a consultant for Boston Scientific. Dr. Aihara is a consultant for Olympus America, Boston Scientific, Fujifilm Medical Systems, Auris Health, Lumendi, Medtronic, ConMed, and 3 D Matrix. Dr. Nishimura is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Lumendi, and Olympus America. Dr. Marion is on the Advisory Board for Janssen. Dr. Song is a consultant for Olympus America and US Endoscopy. Dr. Friedland is a consultant for Capsovision Inc., Dr. Charabaty is on the advisory board of and/or a consultant for and/or receives educational grants from Abbvie, Janssen, Pfizer, and Takeda., (The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).)

Goal: We aim to perform a multicenter retrospective cohort study to determine if elevated serum lipase determines clinical outcomes in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)., Background: Several cases of acute pancreatitis (AP) have recently been reported in association with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Most of the evidence is based on elevated serum lipase values without objective demonstration of pancreatic inflammation or necrosis., Materials and Methods: A population-based, multicenter, retrospective cohort study utilizing TriNetX was performed to obtain aggregated health records of ∼69 million patients from 49 health care organizations from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2020. Adult patients (18 y and above) diagnosed with COVID-19 were identified using appropriate International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) codes and were stratified into 2 groups, with elevated (≥180 U/L) and with normal (≤80 U/L) serum lipase. The primary outcome was 30-day mortality; other outcomes were 30-day rehospitalization, need for mechanical ventilation, need for vasopressor use, acute kidney injury., Results: A total of 435,731 adult patients with COVID-19 were identified, and 1406 of them had elevated serum lipase which was associated with higher 30-day mortality [risk ratio (RR)=1.53, P<0.001], risk of acute kidney injury (RR=1.5, P=0.003), and vasopressor use (RR=1.69, P<0.001) without any difference in 30-day rehospitalization (RR=0.98, P=0.54), or need for mechanical ventilation (RR=1.20, P=0.26). The negative predictive value of normal serum lipase for 3-month mortality in patients with COVID-19 was 91%., Conclusions: Patients with COVID-19 who have elevated serum lipase experience worse clinical outcomes even in the absence of AP. If these findings can be replicated in prospective studies, serum lipase can be utilized as a marker of disease severity in patients with COVID-19., (Copyright © 2021 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background and Aims: Biliary drainage using endoscopic ultrasound (EUS-BD) has been developed as a novel technique to obtain biliary access and drainage when ERCP fails. Numerous studies have demonstrated its safety and efficacy specifically pertaining to those with malignant distal biliary obstruction or altered foregut anatomy. The aim of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of EUS-BD in benign indications in patients with normal foregut anatomy., Methods: We performed a retrospective comparative study from 5 academic medical centers (2008-2018) involving patients with benign biliary obstruction and native foregut anatomy who had an initial failed ERCP with subsequent attempt at biliary decompression via EUS-BD or by repeating ERCP., Results: 36 patients (mean age 61.6 ± 2.2, 38.9% female) who underwent attempted EUS-BD following initial failed ERCP were compared to 50 patients (mean age 62.7 ± 2.3, 73.5% female) who underwent repeat ERCP following an initial failed cannulation. EUS-BD was technically successful in 28 (77.8%) patients with rendezvous being the most common approach (86.1%). A higher level of pre-procedural bilirubin was found to be associated with technical success of EUS-BD (3.65 ± 0.63 versus 1.1 ± 0.4, p value 0.04). Success of repeat ERCP following failed cannulation was 86%. Adverse events were significantly more frequent in the EUS-BD cohort when compared to the repeat ERCP (10 (27.8%) versus 4 (8.0%), p = 0.02, OR 4.32., Conclusions: EUS-BD remains a viable therapeutic option in the setting of benign biliary disease, with success rates of 77.8%. Adverse events were significantly more common with EUS-BD vs. repeat ERCP, emphasizing the need to perform in expert centers with appropriate multidisciplinary support and to strongly consider the urgency of biliary decompression before considering same session EUS-BD after failed initial biliary access., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate survival in patients who received celiac plexus neurolysis (CPN) compared with patients who received opioids., Methods: The Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results-Medicare database was used to identify patients older than 65 years diagnosed with pancreatic cancer between 2007 and 2015. We used claims data to identify patients with a history of CPN and opioid use within 1 year of diagnosis, and other demographic, clinical, and treatment variables. Kaplan-Meier analyses and inverse propensity-weighted adjusted Cox proportional hazard ratios were used to evaluate survival., Results: We identified 648 patients who underwent CPN (19.0%) compared with 2769 patients who received opioids (81.0%). The median survival and interquartile range for patients who received CPN was 4.0 months (2.0-8.0 months) compared with 7.0 months (3.0-12.0 months) for opioid users (P < 0.0001). After adjusting for confounders and propensity score, the patients who received CPN showed worsened survival (hazard ratio, 1.69; 95% confidence interval, 1.59-1.79)., Conclusions: Pancreatic cancer patients who underwent CPN had decreased survival compared with opioid users. This suggests that opioid sparing methods to reduce pancreatic cancer pain may actually be harmful. Future prospective studies should investigate whether other opioid sparing therapies impact pancreatic cancer survival., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background and study aims  Pancreatic cancer (PC) is the fourth most common cause of cancer death in the United States. Previous studies have suggested a survival benefit for endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), an important tool for diagnosis and staging of PC. This study aims to describe EUS use over time and identify factors associated with EUS use and its impact on survival. Patients and methods  This was a retrospective review of the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database linked with Medicare claims. EUS use, clinical and demographic characteristics were evaluated. Chi-squared analysis, Cochran-Armitage test for trend, and logistic regression were used to identify associations between sociodemographic and clinical factors and EUS. Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazard ratios were used for survival analysis. Results  EUS use rose during the time period, from 7.4 % of patients in 2000 to 32.4 % in 2015. Patient diversity increased, with a rising share of older, non-White patients with higher Charlson comorbidity scores. Both clinical (receipt of other therapies, PC stage) and nonclinical factors (region of country, year of diagnosis) were associated with receipt of EUS. While EUS was associated with a survival improvement early in the study period, this effect did not persist for PC patients diagnosed in 2012 to 2015 (median survival 3 month ± standard deviation [SD] 9.8 months without vs. 4 months ± SD 8 months with EUS). Conclusions  Our data support previous studies, which suggest a survival benefit for EUS when it was infrequently used, but finds that benefit was attenuated as EUS became more widely available., Competing Interests: Competing interests NAK serves as a consultant for Apollo Endosurgery, Boston Scientific, Intuitive surgical, and Olympus. CJD has the following disclosures: Boston Scientific: consulting/speaking, AbbVie: speaking, Covidien: consulting/speaking, STERIS: speaking, Mauna Kea: speaking, SafeHeal: consulting. The remaining authors have no conflicts to declare., (The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).)

Background and Objectives: EUS-guided biliary drainage (EUS-BD) offers minimally invasive decompression when conventional endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography fails. Stents can be placed from the intrahepatic ducts into the stomach (hepaticogastrostomy [HG]) or from the extrahepatic bile duct into the small intestine (choledochoduodenostomy [CCD]). Long-term patency of these stents is unknown. In this study, we aim to compare long-term patency of CCD versus HG., Methods: Consecutive patients from 12 centers were included in a registry over 14 years. Demographics, procedure info, adverse events, and follow-up data were collected. Student's t-test, Chi-square, and logistic regression analyses were conducted. Only patients with at least 6-month follow-up or who died within 6-month postprocedure were included., Results: One-hundred and eighty-two patients were included (93% male; mean age: 70; HG n = 95, CCD n = 87). No significant difference in indication, diagnosis, dissection instrument, or stent type was seen between the two groups. Technical success was 92% in both groups. Clinical success was achieved in 75/87 (86%) in the HG group and 80/80 (100%) in the CCD group. A trend toward higher adverse events was seen in the CCD group. A total of 25 patients out of 87 needed stent revision in the HG group (success rate 71%), while eight out of 80 were revised in the CCD group (success rate 90%). Chi square shows CCD success higher than HG (90% vs. 71%, P = 0.010). After adjusting for diagnosis, jaundice or cholangitis presentation, instrument used for dissection, and gender, CCD was 4.5 times more likely than HG to achieve longer stent patency or manage obstruction (odds ratio 4.5; 95% 1.1548-17.6500, P = 0.0302)., Conclusion: CCD is associated with superior long-term patency than HG but with a trend toward higher adverse events. This is particularly important in patients with increased survival. Additional studies are required before recommending a change in practice., Competing Interests: None

Background and study aims  En bloc endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) is preferred over piecemeal resection for polyps ≤ 20 mm. Data on colorectal EMR training are limited. We aimed to evaluate the en bloc EMR rate of polyps ≤ 20 mm among advanced endoscopy trainees and to identify predictors of failed en bloc EMR. Methods  This was a multicenter prospective study evaluating trainee performance in EMR during advanced endoscopy fellowship. A logistic regression model was used to identify the number of procedures and lesion cut-off size associated with an en bloc EMR rate of ≥ 80 %. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify predictors of failed en bloc EMR. Results  Six trainees from six centers performed 189 colorectal EMRs, of which 104 (55 %) were for polyps ≤ 20 mm. Of these, 57.7 % (60/104) were resected en bloc. Trainees with ≥ 30 EMRs (OR 6.80; 95 % CI: 2.80-16.50; P  = 0.00001) and lesions ≤ 17 mm (OR 4.56;95 CI:1.23-16.88; P  = 0.02) were more likely to be associated with an en bloc EMR rate of ≥ 80 %. Independent predictors of failed en bloc EMR on multivariate analysis included: larger polyp size (OR:6.83;95 % CI:2.55-18.4; P  = 0.0001), right colon location (OR:7.15; 95 % CI:1.31-38.9; P  = 0.02), increased procedural difficulty (OR 2.99; 95 % CI:1.13-7.91; P  = 0.03), and having performed < 30 EMRs (OR: 4.87; 95 %CI: 1.05-22.61; P  = 0.04). Conclusions  In this pilot study, we demonstrated that a relatively low proportion of trainees achieved en bloc EMR for polyps ≤ 20 mm and identified procedure volume and lesion size thresholds for successful en bloc EMR and independent predictors for failed en bloc resection. These preliminary results support the need for future efforts to define EMR procedure competence thresholds during training., Competing Interests: Competing interests Dr. Yang is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Lumendi, and Steris Endoscopy. Dr. Draganov is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Olympus America, Cook Medical, Microtech, Steris Endoscopy, Merit, Lumendi, and Fujifilm. Dr. Wallace is a consultant for Virgo Inc, Cosmo/Aries Pharmaceuticals, Anx Robotica (2019), Covidien, GI Supply, Endokey, Endostart, Microtech, and Boston Scientific; has stock options with Virgo Inc; and receives research grants from Fujifilm, Boston Scientific, Olympus America, Medtronic, Ninepoint Medical, and Cosmo/Aries Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Gomez is a consultant for Olympus America. Dr. Bucobo is a consultant for Cook Medical. Dr. Trindade is a consultant for Pentax Medical and Olympus America and receives research support from Ninepoint Medical. Dr. Kumta is a consultant for Apollo Endosurgery, Boston Scientific, Gyrus ACMI Inc, GLG consulting, and Olympus. Dr. DiMaio is a consultant and teacher for Boston Scientific and Medtronic and a speaker for AbbVie. Dr. Pohl receives research grants from Steris and Cosmo/Aries Pharmaceuticals., (The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).)

Small bowel neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) represent approximately one-third of NETs of the gastrointestinal tract, and their incidence is increasing. When determining if endoscopic resection is appropriate, endoscopic ultrasound is used to assess the lesion size and depth of invasion for duodenal NETs. A number of techniques, including endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR), band-assisted EMR (band-EMR), endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD), and over-the-scope clip-assisted endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR), have been studied; however, the best technique for endoscopic resection remains unclear. The vast majority of currently available data are retrospective, and prospective studies with longer follow-up times are required. For jejunal and ileal NETs, endoscopic techniques such as video capsule endoscopy (VCE) and balloon enteroscopy (BE) assist in diagnosis. This includes localization of the primary NET in metastatic disease where initial workup has been negative, and the identification of multifocal disease, which may change management and prognostication.

Background and Aims: Esophageal function testing is an integral component of the evaluation of refractory GERD and esophageal motility disorders. This review summarizes the current technologies available for esophageal function testing, including the functional luminal imaging probe (FLIP), high-resolution esophageal manometry (HRM), and multichannel intraluminal impedance (MII) and pH monitoring., Methods: We performed a MEDLINE, PubMed, and MAUDE database literature search to identify pertinent clinical studies through March 2021 using the following key words: esophageal manometry, HRM, esophageal impedance, FLIP, MII, and esophageal pH testing. Technical data were gathered from traditional and web-based publications, proprietary publications, and informal communications with pertinent vendors. The report was drafted, reviewed, and edited by the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Technology Committee and approved by the Governing Board of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy., Results: FLIP is a high-resolution impedance planimetry system used for pressure and dimension measurement in the esophagus, pylorus, and anal sphincter. FLIP provides complementary information to HRM for esophageal motility disorders, especially achalasia. The Chicago classification, based on HRM data, is a widely adopted algorithmic scheme used to diagnose esophageal motility disorders. MII detects intraluminal bolus movement and, combined with pH measurement or manometry, provides information on acid and non-acid gastroesophageal reflux and bolus transit in patients with refractory GERD and for preoperative evaluation for anti-reflux procedures., Conclusions: Esophageal function testing techniques (FLIP, HRM, and MII-pH) have diagnostic and prognostic value in the evaluation of esophageal motility disorders and refractory GERD. Newer technologies and classification systems have enabled an increased understanding of these diseases., (© 2022 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Background: Although peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) is highly effective for the management of achalasia, clinical failures may occur. The optimal management of patients who fail POEM is not well known. This study aimed to compare the outcomes of different management strategies in patients who had failed POEM., Methods: This was an international multicenter retrospective study at 16 tertiary centers between January 2012 and November 2019. All patients who underwent POEM and experienced persistent or recurrent symptoms (Eckardt score > 3) were included. The primary outcome was to compare the rates of clinical success (Eckardt score ≤ 3) between different management strategies. RESULTS : 99 patients (50 men [50.5 %]; mean age 51.4 [standard deviation (SD) 16.2]) experienced clinical failure during the study period, with a mean (SD) Eckardt score of 5.4 (0.3). A total of 29 patients (32.2 %) were managed conservatively and 70 (71 %) underwent retreatment (repeat POEM 33 [33 %], pneumatic dilation 30 [30 %], and laparoscopic Heller myotomy (LHM) 7 [7.1 %]). During a median follow-up of 10 (interquartile range 3 - 20) months, clinical success was highest in patients who underwent repeat POEM (25 /33 [76 %]; mean [SD] Eckardt score 2.1 [2.1]), followed by pneumatic dilation (18/30 [60 %]; Eckardt score 2.8 [2.3]), and LHM (2/7 [29 %]; Eckardt score 4 [1.8]; P  = 0.12). A total of 11 patients in the conservative group (37.9 %; mean Eckardt score 4 [1.8]) achieved clinical success. CONCLUSION : This study comprehensively assessed an international cohort of patients who underwent management of failed POEM. Repeat POEM and pneumatic dilation achieved acceptable clinical success, with excellent safety profiles., Competing Interests: Dr. Costamagna is a consultant for Cook Medical, Boston Scientific, and Olympus, and has an Olympus research grant. Dr. Ujiki has received grants and personal fees from Boston Scientific and Gore, and personal fees from Olympus and Medtronic, outside of the the submitted work. Dr. Draganov is a consultant for Olympus, BSC, Cook, Lumendi, and Microtech. Dr. Velanovich receives payment for speakers’ bureau service from A-Cell, Inc. Dr. Marks is a consultant for Boston Scientific and Olympus. Dr. Sedarat is a consultant for Boston Scientific. Dr. Kumta is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Olympus, and Apollo Endosurgery. Dr. Khashab is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Medtronic, and Olympus., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Gastroenterologists at all levels of practice benefit from formal mentoring. Much of the current literature on mentoring in gastroenterology is based on expert opinion rather than data. In this study, we aimed to identify gender-related barriers to successful mentoring relationships from the mentor and mentee perspectives., Methods: A voluntary, web-based survey was distributed to physicians at 20 academic institutions across the United States. Overall, 796 gastroenterology fellows and faculty received the survey link, with 334 physicians responding to the survey (42% response rate), of whom 299 (90%; 129 women and 170 men) completed mentorship questions and were included in analysis., Results: Responses of women and men were compared. Compared with men, more women preferred a mentor of the same gender (38.6% women vs 4.2% men, P < 0.0001) but less often had one (45.5% vs 70.2%, P < 0.0001). Women also reported having more difficulty finding a mentor (44.4% vs 16.0%, P < 0.0001) and more often cited inability to identify a mentor of the same gender as a contributing factor (12.8% vs 0.9%, P = 0.0004). More women mentors felt comfortable advising women mentees about work-life balance (88.3% vs 63.8%, P = 0.0005). Nonetheless, fewer women considered themselves effective mentors (33.3% vs 52.6%, P = 0.03). More women reported feeling pressured to mentor because of their gender (39.5% vs 0.9% of men, P < 0.0001). Despite no gender differences, one-third of respondents reported negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their ability to mentor and be mentored., Discussion: Inequities exist in the experiences of women mentees and mentors in gastroenterology, which may affect career advancement and job satisfaction., (Copyright © 2021 by The American College of Gastroenterology.)

Background & Aims: Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is a widely accepted treatment option for superficial gastric neoplasia in Asia, but there are few data on outcomes of gastric ESD from North America. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of gastric ESD in North America., Methods: We analyzed data from 347 patients who underwent gastric ESD at 25 centers, from 2010 through 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, lesion characteristics, procedure details and related adverse events, treatment outcomes, local recurrence, and vital status at the last follow up. For the 277 patients with available follow-up data, the median interval between initial ESD and last clinical or endoscopic evaluation was 364 days. The primary endpoint was the rate of en bloc and R0 resection. Secondary outcomes included curative resection, rates of adverse events and recurrence, and gastric cancer-related death., Results: Ninety patients (26%) had low-grade adenomas or dysplasia, 82 patients (24%) had high-grade dysplasia, 139 patients (40%) had early gastric cancer, and 36 patients (10%) had neuroendocrine tumors. Proportions of en bloc and R0 resection for all lesions were 92%/82%, for early gastric cancers were 94%/75%, for adenomas and low-grade dysplasia were 93%/ 92%, for high-grade dysplasia were 89%/ 87%, and for neuroendocrine tumors were 92%/75%. Intraprocedural perforation occurred in 6.6% of patients; 82% of these were treated successfully with endoscopic therapy. Delayed bleeding occurred in 2.6% of patients. No delayed perforation or procedure-related deaths were observed. There were local recurrences in 3.9% of cases; all occurred after non-curative ESD resection. Metachronous lesions were identified in 14 patients (6.9%). One of 277 patients with clinical follow up died of metachronous gastric cancer that occurred 2.5 years after the initial ESD., Conclusions: ESD is a highly effective treatment for superficial gastric neoplasia and should be considered as a viable option for patients in North America. The risk of local recurrence is low and occurs exclusively after non-curative resection. Careful endoscopic surveillance is necessary to identify and treat metachronous lesions., (Copyright © 2021 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly impacted the practice of endoscopy, but characteristics of COVID patients undergoing endoscopy have not been adequately described., Aims: To compare findings, clinical outcomes, and patient characteristics of endoscopies performed during the pandemic in patients with and without COVID-19., Methods: This was a retrospective multicenter study of adult endoscopies at six academic hospitals in New York between March 16 and April 30, 2020. Patient and procedure characteristics including age, sex, indication, findings, interventions, and outcomes were compared in patients testing positive, negative, or untested for COVID-19., Results: Six hundred and five endoscopies were performed on 545 patients during the study period. There were 84 (13.9%), 255 (42.2%), and 266 (44.0%) procedures on COVID-positive, negative, and untested patients, respectively. COVID patients were more likely to undergo endoscopy for gastrointestinal bleeding or gastrostomy tube placement, and COVID patients with gastrointestinal bleeding more often required hemostatic interventions on multivariable logistic regression. COVID patients had increased length of stay, intensive care unit admission, and intubation rate. Twenty-seven of 521 patients (5.2%) with no or negative COVID testing prior to endoscopy later tested positive, a median of 13.5 days post-procedure., Conclusions: Endoscopies in COVID patients were more likely to require interventions, due either to more severe illness or a higher threshold to perform endoscopy. A significant number of patients endoscoped without testing were subsequently found to be COVID-positive. Gastroenterologists in areas affected by the pandemic must adapt to changing patterns of endoscopy practice and ensure pre-endoscopy COVID testing., (© 2020. Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background & Aims: Given that gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms are a prominent extrapulmonary manifestation of COVID-19, we investigated intestinal infection with SARS-CoV-2, its effect on pathogenesis, and clinical significance., Methods: Human intestinal biopsy tissues were obtained from patients with COVID-19 (n = 19) and uninfected control individuals (n = 10) for microscopic examination, cytometry by time of flight analyses, and RNA sequencing. Additionally, disease severity and mortality were examined in patients with and without GI symptoms in 2 large, independent cohorts of hospitalized patients in the United States (N = 634) and Europe (N = 287) using multivariate logistic regressions., Results: COVID-19 case patients and control individuals in the biopsy cohort were comparable for age, sex, rates of hospitalization, and relevant comorbid conditions. SARS-CoV-2 was detected in small intestinal epithelial cells by immunofluorescence staining or electron microscopy in 15 of 17 patients studied. High-dimensional analyses of GI tissues showed low levels of inflammation, including down-regulation of key inflammatory genes including IFNG, CXCL8, CXCL2, and IL1B and reduced frequencies of proinflammatory dendritic cells compared with control individuals. Consistent with these findings, we found a significant reduction in disease severity and mortality in patients presenting with GI symptoms that was independent of sex, age, and comorbid illnesses and despite similar nasopharyngeal SARS-CoV-2 viral loads. Furthermore, there was reduced levels of key inflammatory proteins in circulation in patients with GI symptoms., Conclusions: These data highlight the absence of a proinflammatory response in the GI tract despite detection of SARS-CoV-2. In parallel, reduced mortality in patients with COVID-19 presenting with GI symptoms was observed. A potential role of the GI tract in attenuating SARS-CoV-2-associated inflammation needs to be further examined., (Copyright © 2021 AGA Institute. All rights reserved.)

Background and study aims  The rate of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) after per oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) is concerning. Endoscopic anti-reflux methods, such as Trans Oral Incisionless Fundoplication (TIF), are crucial for the long-term success of POEM, especially if they can be performed in the same session. Methods  We completed a proof-of-concept canine pilot study (n = 6) to assess safety and feasibility of POEM and TIF in a single session (POEM-TIF). Subsequently, POEM-TIF was also performed in patients with achalasia (n = 5). Herein, we report on the safety, technical and clinical success of the first-in-human cases with symptom follow-up at 1, 3 and 6 months and pH testing at 6 months. Results  POEM was completed successfully in six canines (3 anterior and 3 posterior myotomies), followed by TIF in the same session. Necropsy and extensive testing demonstrated no evidence of mucosal injury and no leaks. The reconstructed valve was 220 to 240 degrees, 3 to 4 cm in length, and resulted in concomitant esophageal lengthening (2-5 cm). Using similar principles, the first-in-human cases were performed without intraprocedural or delayed adverse events. pH testing at 6 months showed that four of five patients had no evidence of GERD (DeMeester > 14.72), and in one case, there was evidence of esophagitis. Conclusions  Single session POEM-TIF appears to be safe and feasible. Early clinical human data suggests that it may be able to reduce post POEM GERD, however the additional secondary benefits such as lengthening and straightening of the esophagus, may prove to be equally important for the long-term success of POEM., Competing Interests: Competing interests Dr. Benias is a consultant for FujiFilm, Apollo Endosurgery, and Medtronic. Dr. Kumta is a consultant for Apollo Endosurgery. Dr. Sethi is a consultant for FujiFilm and Boston Scientific. Dr. Kumbhari is a consultant for Medtronic, Pentax Medical, Boston Scientific, FujiFilm, and Apollo Endosurgery and receives research support from ERBE USA and Apollo Endosurgery. Dr. Khashab is a consultant for Olympus USA and Boston Scientific., (The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).)

Background and Aims: With an increasing number of women joining procedural fields, including gastroenterology, optimizing the work environment for learning, teaching, and clinical practice is essential to the well-being of both physicians and their patients. We queried female and male gastroenterologists on their beliefs toward the endoscopy suite environment, as well as their experiences in learning and teaching endoscopic skills., Methods: We distributed a web-based survey to 403 gastroenterology fellows and practicing gastroenterologists at 12 academic institutions and 3 large private practices. We used univariate and multivariate analysis to compare the responses of female and male gastroenterologists., Results: The overall response rate was 32% (n = 130); 54 women and 61 men completed the survey in its entirety and were included in the analysis (15 respondents did not meet the inclusion criteria). Baseline demographics were comparable between the groups. Overall, fewer women than men were trained using tactile instruction (41% vs 67%; P = .004). Of those trained using tactile instruction, 60.3%, with no gender differences, felt it was also important for endoscopic learning. More women reported experiencing gender bias toward themselves during training (57.4% vs 13.1%; P = .001) as well as in their current careers (50.0% vs 9.8%; P = .001). When queried on treatment of gastroenterologists by endoscopy staff, 75.9% of women reported that men were treated more favorably, whereas 70.5% of men felt that both male and female gastroenterologists were treated equally., Conclusions: Inequities exist with regard to the experience of men and women in gastroenterology, and specific challenges for women may have an impact on their career choices and ability to safely and effectively learn, teach, and practice endoscopy., (Copyright © 2021 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Competing Interests: Dr. DiMaio is a speaker and consultant for Boston Scientific and Covidien as well as a speaker for AbbVie. Dr. Kumta is a consultant for Olympus America, Boston Scientific, Apollo Endosurgery, and Gyrus ACMI. The other authors have no interests to declare.

Video 1Use of submucosal injection prior to en-bloc endoscopic mucosal resection.Video 2Use of a detachable loop ligating device prior to hot snare resection of a pedunculated polyp., (© 2021 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Introduction: Endoscopic necrosectomy has emerged as the preferred treatment modality for walled-off pancreatic necrosis. This study was designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of direct endoscopic necrosectomy with and without hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) lavage., Methods: Retrospective chart reviews were performed for all patients undergoing endoscopic transmural management of walled-off pancreatic necrosis at 9 major medical centers from November 2011 to August 2018. Clinical success was defined as the resolution of the collection by imaging within 6 months, without requiring non-endoscopic procedures or surgery., Results: Of 293 patients, 204 met the inclusion criteria. Technical and clinical success rates were 100% (204/204) and 81% (166/189), respectively. For patients, 122 (59.8%) patients had at least one H2O2 necrosectomy (H2O2 group) and 82 (40.2%) patients had standard endoscopic necrosectomy. Clinical success was higher in the H2O2 group: 106/113 (93.8%) vs 60/76 (78.9%), P = 0.002. On a multivariate analysis, the use of H2O2 was associated with higher clinical success rate (odds ratio 3.30, P = 0.033) and earlier resolution (odds ratio 2.27, P < 0.001). During a mean follow-up of 274 days, 27 complications occurred. Comparing procedures performed with and without H2O2 (n = 250 vs 183), there was no difference in post-procedure bleeding (7 vs 9, P = 0.25), perforation (2 vs 3, P = 0.66), infection (1 vs 2, P = 0.58), or overall complication rate (n = 13 [5.2%] vs 14 [7.7%], P = 0.30)., Discussion: H2O2-assisted endoscopic necrosectomy had a higher clinical success rate and a shorter time to resolution with equivalent complication rates relative to standard necrosectomy.See the visual abstract at http://links.lww.com/AJG/B714.(Equation is included in full-text article.).

Background and Aims: Data on colorectal EMR (C-EMR) training are lacking. We aimed to evaluate C-EMR training among advanced endoscopy fellows (AEFs) by using a standardized assessment tool (STAT)., Methods: This multicenter prospective study used a STAT to grade AEF training in C-EMR during their 12-month fellowship. Cumulative sum analysis was used to establish learning curves and competence for cognitive and technical components of C-EMR and overall performance. Sensitivity analysis was performed by varying failure rates. AEFs completed a self-assessment questionnaire to assess their comfort level with performing C-EMR at the completion of their fellowship., Results: Six AEFs (189 C-EMRs; mean per AEF, 31.5 ± 18.5) were included. Mean polyp size was 24.3 ± 12.6 mm, and mean procedure time was 22.6 ± 16.1 minutes. Learning curve analyses revealed that less than 50% of AEFs achieved competence for key cognitive and technical C-EMR endpoints. All 6 AEFs reported feeling comfortable performing C-EMR independently at the end of their training, although only 2 of them achieved competence in their overall performance. The minimum threshold to achieve competence in these 2 AEFs was 25 C-EMRs., Conclusions: A relatively low proportion of AEFs achieved competence on key cognitive and technical aspects of C-EMR during their 12-month fellowship. The relatively low number of C-EMRs performed by AEFs may be insufficient to achieve competence, in spite of their self-reported readiness for independent practice. These pilot data serve as an initial framework for competence threshold, and suggest the need for validated tools for formal C-EMR training assessment., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Background: Introduction of the full-thickness resection device (FTRD) has allowed endoscopic resection of difficult lesions such as those with deep wall origin/infiltration or those located in difficult anatomic locations. The aim of this study is to assess the outcomes of the FTRD among its early users in the USA., Methods: Patients who underwent endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR) for lower gastrointestinal tract lesions using the FTRD at 26 US tertiary care centers between 10/2017 and 12/2018 were included. Primary outcome was R0 resection rate. Secondary outcomes included rate of technical success (en bloc resection), achievement of histologic full-thickness resection (FTR), and adverse events (AE)., Results: A total of 95 patients (mean age 65.5 ± 12.6 year, 38.9% F) were included. The most common indication, for use of FTRD, was resection of difficult adenomas (non-lifting, recurrent, residual, or involving appendiceal orifice/diverticular opening) (66.3%), followed by adenocarcinomas (22.1%), and subepithelial tumors (SET) (11.6%). Lesions were located in the proximal colon (61.1%), distal colon (18.9%), or rectum (20%). Mean lesion diameter was 15.5 ± 6.4 mm and 61.1% had a prior resection attempt. The mean total procedure time was 59.7 ± 31.8 min. R0 resection was achieved in 82.7% while technical success was achieved in 84.2%. Histologically FTR was demonstrated in 88.1% of patients. There were five clinical AE (5.3%) with 2 (2.1%) requiring surgical intervention., Conclusions: Results from this first US multicenter study suggest that EFTR with the FTRD is a technically feasible, safe, and effective technique for resecting difficult colonic lesions.

Goal: The goal of this study was to study the incidence of fungal infection in necrotizing pancreatitis (NP) and its impact on mortality., Background: Infected pancreatic necrosis is a major contributor to morbidity and mortality in patients with NP. While pancreatic fungal infection (PFI) has frequently been identified in patients with NP, its effect on the clinical outcomes is unclear., Materials and Methods: A literature search was performed in Medline (Ovid), Embase (Ovid), and the Cochrane library. All prospective and retrospective studies that examined the incidence of fungal infection in NP with subgroup mortality data were included. For fungal infection of NP, studies with fungal isolation from pancreatic necrotic tissue were included. Newcastle Ottawa Scale and Joanna Briggs Institute's critical appraisal tool were used for bias assessment., Results: Twenty-two studies comprising 2151 subjects with NP were included for the quantitative analysis. The mean incidence of fungal infection was 26.6% (572/2151). In-hospital mortality in the pooled sample of NP patients with PFI (N=572) was significantly higher [odds ratio (OR)=3.95, 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.6-5.8] than those without PFI. In a separate analysis of 7 studies, the mean difference in the length of stay between those with and without fungal infection was 22.99 days (95% CI: 14.67-31.3). The rate of intensive care unit admission (OR=3.95; 95% CI: 2.6-5.8), use of prophylactic antibacterials (OR=2.76; 95% CI: 1.31-5.81) and duration of antibacterial therapy (mean difference=8.71 d; 95% CI: 1.33-16.09) were all significantly higher in patients with PFI. Moderate heterogeneity was identified among the studies on estimating OR for mortality (I2=43%) between the 2 groups., Conclusions: PFI is common in patients with NP and is associated with increased mortality, intensive care unit admission rate, and length of stay. Further prospective studies are needed to better understand the pathophysiology of PFIs and to determine the role for preemptive therapeutic strategies, such as prophylactic antifungal therapy., (Copyright © 2020 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: In 2020, only 19% of 63 matched advanced endoscopy (AE) fellows were women. This study evaluates the gender-specific factors that influence gastroenterologists to pursue careers in AE., Methods: An anonymous survey was distributed to gastroenterology fellows and attendings through various gastroenterology society online forums. Data were collected on demographics, training, mentorship, current practice, family planning, and career satisfaction., Results: Women comprised 71.1% of the 332 respondents. 24.7% of female fellows plan to pursue an AE career compared with 37.5% of male fellows (P = 0.195). The main motivating factor for both genders was interest in the subject area. Interest in another subspecialty was the main deterring factor for both genders. Women were more deterred by absence of same-sex mentors (P < 0.001), perception of gender-based bias in the workplace (P = 0.009), family planning (P = 0.018), fertility/pregnancy risks from radiation (P < 0.001), and lack of ergonomic equipment (P = 0.003). AE gastroenterologists of both genders were satisfied with their career decision and would recommend the field to any fellow. Most respondents (64%) believed that more female role models/mentors would improve representation of women in AE., Discussion: There are multiple gender-specific factors that deter women from pursuing AE. Increasing the number of female role models is strongly perceived to improve representation of women in AE. Most AE attendings are satisfied with their career and would recommend it to fellows of any gender. Thus, early targeted mentorship of female trainees has potential to improve recruitment of women to the field., (Copyright © 2021 by The American College of Gastroenterology.)