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ZusammenfassungÖsophagusmotilitätsstörungen sind Erkrankungen, bei denen es aufgrund einer Veränderung der neuromuskulären Strukturen zu Fehlfunktionen des Schluckakts kommt. Das Leitsymptom ist daher die Dysphagie für feste und/oder flüssige Speisen, häufig begleitet von Symptomen wie Thoraxschmerz, Regurgitation, Sodbrennen, und Gewichtsverlust. Die Ösophagusmanometrie ist der Goldstandard in der Diagnostik. Endoskopie und Radiologie dienen dem Ausschluss entzündlicher oder maligner Veränderungen.Durch die Einführung der hochauflösenden Ösophagusmanometrie (HRM) hat sich die Diagnostik der Ösophagusmotilitätsstörungen verbessert und mit der Chicago-Klassifikation zu einer neuen Einteilung geführt, die im letzten Jahrzehnt mehrfach modifiziert wurde, zuletzt 2020 mit der Chicago-Klassifikation v4.0. Verglichen mit der Vorversion v3.0 finden sich einige wichtige Änderungen, die anhand der im klinischen Alltag wichtigsten Ösophagusmotilitätsstörungen vorgestellt werden.

Oesophageal motility disorders comprise a group of disorders characterized by malfunction of the swallowing act due to damage to neuromuscular structures responsible for the coordination of oesophageal function. The leading symptom is dysphagia for solids and/or liquids and it is frequently associated with additional symptoms, including regurgitation, chest pain, heartburn, and weight loss. Manometry represents the gold standard for the diagnosis of motility disorders of the oesophagus which has been defined in the Chicago Classification by the introduction of high-resolution impedance manometry and will be presented in this chapter with special emphasis on motility disorders which are of particular relevance to gastroenterologists and surgeons.

Robotic-assisted myotomy with partial fundoplication for patients with achalasia has been established as a safe and effective procedure with similar short-term results and lower rates of intraoperative esophageal perforations. Our aim was to investigate a defined patient cohort undergoing robotic-assisted and laparoscopic surgery providing pre- and postoperative symptom score and high-resolution manometry to evaluate the clinical and functional outcome.All patients underwent clinical, endoscopic, radiological and manometric investigation to verify the diagnosis of achalasia. High-resolution manometry was performed preoperatively and 6 months postoperatively and categorized according to the Chicago Classification (v4.0). We used the Eckardt Score to evaluate symptomatic outcome. All patients underwent either robotic-assisted or laparoscopic myotomy with partial anterior fundoplication (180° Dor) using the DaVinci Xi surgical system (Intuitive, Sunnyvale, California, USA). From a total amount of 101 patients, we analyzed the data of 78 (47 robotic and 31 laparoscopic) procedures between 2015 and 2020. All patients showed a significant decrease of the Eckardt Score in the robotic group (median 6 vs. 2) as well as in the laparoscopic group (median 7.5 vs. 3). The postoperative LESP and 4 s-IRP was significantly reduced in all patients in the robotic group [median LESP (mmHg) 34.16 vs. 16.9; median 4 s-IRP (mmHg) 28.85 vs. 14.55], as well as in the laparoscopic group [median LESP (mmHg) 35.34 vs. 17.3; median 4 s-IRP (mmHg) 25.6 vs. 15.9]. There was no significant difference for these parameters between the groups. There was no event of intraoperative esophageal perforation in the robotic cohort, whereas there were 2 in the laparoscopic group. Our data support the safe and effective robotic approach for the surgical treatment of achalasia. Not only the clinical outcome but also the functional results measured by high-resolution manometry are similar to the laparoscopic procedure. Further investigations in larger prospective multicenter studies are needed.

Das Osophaguskarzinom stellt eine komplexe Tumorentitat dar mit steigendem Anteil an Adenokarzinomen. Bei Fruhkarzinomen wird anhand der Tiefeninfiltration der Mukosa in m1- bis m3- bzw. der Submukosa in sm1- bis sm3-Tumoren unterteilt. Das Risiko von Lymphknotenmetastasen korreliert stark mit der Tiefeninvasion und steigt mit Infiltration der Submukosa sprunghaft an. Die Autoren fuhrten eine selektive Literaturrecherche (MEDLINE, PubMed, Cochrane Library, International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number [ISRCTN] Registry) zum aktuellen Management beim Osophagusfruhkarzinom durch. Die endoskopische Diagnostik und Dignitatsbeurteilung oberflachlicher Osophaguskarzinome ist um die virtuelle Chromoendoskopie zu den bisherigen Farbetechniken erweitert worden. Die endoskopische Resektion ist das diagnostische und therapeutische Verfahren der Wahl bei mukosalen Adenokarzinomen mit niedrigem Risiko (Grading 1 oder 2, keine Blut‑/Lymphgefasinvasion). Unter speziellen Voraussetzungen konnen auch Adenokarzinome der oberen Submukosa (sm1) endoskopisch abgetragen werden. Alle weiteren Stadien bedurfen einer chirurgischen Therapie. Beim Plattenepithelkarzinom ohne Risikofaktoren ist ab einer Infiltration der 3. Mukosaschicht (m3) die chirurgisch-onkologische Osophagusresektion indiziert. Die endoskopische Submukosadissektion (ESD) weist selbst bei grosen Lasionen hohe Raten an En-bloc- und R0-Resektionen auf. Grenzfalle zwischen endoskopischer und chirurgischer Therapie von Osophagusfruhkarzinomen benotigen einen interdisziplinaren Ansatz und individuell angepasste Strategien, welche im lokal fortgeschrittenen Stadium immer in ein multimodales Konzept eingebettet sind.

Esophageal motility disorders are diseases in which there are malfunctions of the act of swallowing due to a change in neuromuscular structures. The main symptom is therefore dysphagia for solid and/or liquid foods, often accompanied by symptoms such as chest pain, regurgitation, heartburn, and weight loss. Esophageal manometry is the gold standard in diagnostics. Endoscopy and radiology serve to exclude inflammatory or malignant changes. With the introduction of high-resolution esophageal manometry (HRM), the diagnosis of esophageal motility disorders has improved and led to a new classification with the Chicago Classification, which has been modified several times in the last decade, most recently in 2021 with the Chicago Classification v4.0. Compared to the previous version 3.0, there are some important changes that are presented based on the most important esophageal motility disorders in everyday clinical practice.Ösophagusmotilitätsstörungen sind Erkrankungen, bei denen es aufgrund einer Veränderung der neuromuskulären Strukturen zu Fehlfunktionen des Schluckakts kommt. Das Leitsymptom ist daher die Dysphagie für feste und/oder flüssige Speisen, häufig begleitet von Symptomen wie Thoraxschmerz, Regurgitation, Sodbrennen und Gewichtsverlust. Die Ösophagusmanometrie ist der Goldstandard in der Diagnostik. Endoskopie und Radiologie dienen dem Ausschluss entzündlicher oder maligner Veränderungen.Durch die Einführung der hochauflösenden Ösophagusmanometrie (HRM) hat sich die Diagnostik der Ösophagusmotilitätsstörungen verbessert und mit der Chicago-Klassifikation zu einer neuen Einteilung geführt, die im letzten Jahrzehnt mehrfach modifiziert wurde, zuletzt 2021 mit der Chicago-Klassifikation v4.0. Verglichen mit der Vorversion v3.0 finden sich einige wichtige Änderungen, die anhand der im klinischen Alltag wichtigsten Ösophagusmotilitätsstörungen vorgestellt werden.

Esophageal motility disorders are diseases in which there are malfunctions of the act of swallowing due to a change in neuromuscular structures. The main symptom is therefore dysphagia for solid and/or liquid foods, often accompanied by symptoms such as chest pain, regurgitation, heartburn, and weight loss. Esophageal manometry is the gold standard in diagnostics. Endoscopy and radiology serve to exclude inflammatory or malignant changes. With the introduction of high-resolution esophageal manometry (HRM), the diagnosis of esophageal motility disorders has improved and led to a new classification with the Chicago Classification, which has been modified several times in the last decade, most recently in 2020 with the Chicago Classification v4.0. Compared to the previous version 3.0, there are some important changes that are presented based on the most important esophageal motility disorders in everyday clinical practice.Ösophagusmotilitätsstörungen sind Erkrankungen, bei denen es aufgrund einer Veränderung der neuromuskulären Strukturen zu Fehlfunktionen des Schluckakts kommt. Das Leitsymptom ist daher die Dysphagie für feste und/oder flüssige Speisen, häufig begleitet von Symptomen wie Thoraxschmerz, Regurgitation, Sodbrennen, und Gewichtsverlust. Die Ösophagusmanometrie ist der Goldstandard in der Diagnostik. Endoskopie und Radiologie dienen dem Ausschluss entzündlicher oder maligner Veränderungen.Durch die Einführung der hochauflösenden Ösophagusmanometrie (HRM) hat sich die Diagnostik der Ösophagusmotilitätsstörungen verbessert und mit der Chicago-Klassifikation zu einer neuen Einteilung geführt, die im letzten Jahrzehnt mehrfach modifiziert wurde, zuletzt 2020 mit der Chicago-Klassifikation v4.0. Verglichen mit der Vorversion v3.0 finden sich einige wichtige Änderungen, die anhand der im klinischen Alltag wichtigsten Ösophagusmotilitätsstörungen vorgestellt werden.

Die vollstandige Resektion von Tumorgewebe und erfolgreiche Rekonstruktion der Kontinuitat des Magen-Darm-Trakts sind in der onkologischen Viszeralchirurgie von essenzieller Bedeutung fur das postoperative Outcome. Neuerungen und Weiterentwicklungen in der intraoperativen Bildgebung ermoglichen die Visualisierung zuvor nur schwer beurteilbarer Parameter, wie der Gewebeperfusion und der Lymphdrainagewege. Dies erlaubt eine direkte Optimierung des operativen Verfahrens und kann somit zur Reduktion von Komplikationen und zur Erhohung der Patientensicherheit beitragen. Eine bereits in vielen Fachgebieten etablierte Methode der Echtzeitbildgebung ist das Fluoreszenz-Imaging mittels Indozyaningrun (ICG-FI). In der Viszeralchirurgie wird es aktuell besonders zur Perfusionsbeurteilung gastrointestinaler Anastomosen und zum „Lymphknoten-Mapping“ eingesetzt. Jedoch werden in ersten Untersuchungen auch weitere mogliche Anwendungsgebiete beschrieben, beispielsweise die Detektion von Lebermetastasen und Peritonealkarzinosen im Rahmen von Staging-Untersuchungen oder der zytoreduktiven Chirurgie. Eine weitere vielversprechende Methode ist das Hyperspektral-Imaging (HSI), welches sich aktuell noch in einer experimentellen Phase befindet, zukunftig aber ein wichtiges Instrument zur noninvasiven Perfusionsbeurteilung und Gewebedifferenzierung darstellen konnte. Im vorliegenden Beitrag wird ein Uberblick uber die aktuellen Anwendungsgebiete neuer intraoperativer Imaging-Verfahren gegeben und auf neue Moglichkeiten und Perspektiven der modernen „image-guided surgery“ hingewiesen.

Acute mesenteric ischemia is a life-threatening acute condition, which requires an interdisciplinary approach, including vascular recanalization and surgical treatment. Visual evaluation of intestinal perfusion might be misleading, and therefore, additional tools are necessary to reliably be able to resect the ischemic intestine. Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) has been shown to be feasible and safe for real-time assessment of tissue perfusion in visceral surgery but has never been used in cases of acute mesenteric ischemia. Therefore, we applied HSI in acute mesenteric ischemia to evaluate it for potential aid in the objectively discriminating ischemic and well-perfused intestine during explorative laparotomy.We recorded HSI measurements in 11 cases of acute mesenteric ischemia during explorative laparotomy. We evaluated the recorded images for macroscopic visual perfusion quality and divided it into three groups. Of those three groups, we calculated and compared the HSI indexes of tissue saturation, near-infrared perfusion index, organ hemoglobin index, and tissue water index, as well as the reflectance spectra.We found significant differences in tissue saturation (0.7% versus 0.45%; P = 0.002) and near-infrared perfusion index (0.58 versus 0.23; P 0.001) in poorly perfused intestinal segments compared with the viable intestine. Furthermore, we could detect an increasing peak at 630 nm of the reflectance spectra in less viable tissues, indicating a maximum in necrotic tissues. We attributed this peak to an increase in met-hemoglobin content in necrotic tissues, which is supported by the increase in the HSI organ hemoglobin index.HSI is able to discriminate tissue perfusion in acute mesenteric ischemia reliably and therefore might be helpful for resection. In addition, HSI gives information on tissue viability via reflectance spectra.

Background Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) during surgical procedures is a new method for perfusion quantification and tissue discrimination. Its use has been limited to open surgery due to large camera sizes, missing color video, or long acquisition times. A hand-held, laparoscopic hyperspectral camera has been developed now to overcome those disadvantages and evaluated clinically for the first time. Methods In a clinical evaluation study, gastrointestinal resectates of ten cancer patients were investigated using the laparoscopic hyperspectral camera. Reference data from corresponding anatomical regions were acquired with a clinically approved HSI system. An image registration process was executed that allowed for pixel-wise comparisons of spectral data and parameter images (StO2: oxygen saturation of tissue, NIR PI: near-infrared perfusion index, OHI: organ hemoglobin index, TWI: tissue water index) provided by both camera systems. The mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean square error (RMSE) served for the quantitative evaluations. Spearman’s rank correlation between factors related to the study design like the time of spectral white balancing and MAE, respectively RMSE, was calculated. Results The obtained mean MAEs between the TIVITA® Tissue and the laparoscopic hyperspectral system resulted in StO2: 11% ± 7%, NIR PI: 14±3, OHI: 14± 5, and TWI: 10 ± 2. The mean RMSE between both systems was 0.1±0.03 from 500 to 750 nm and 0.15 ±0.06 from 750 to 1000 nm. Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients showed no significant correlation between MAE or RMSE and influencing factors related to the study design. Conclusion Qualitatively, parameter images of the laparoscopic system corresponded to those of the system for open surgery. Quantitative deviations were attributed to technical differences rather than the study design. Limitations of the presented study are addressed in current large-scale in vivo trials.

Die Hyperspektralbildgebung („HyperSpectral Imaging“ [HSI]) erlaubt quantitative Gewebeanalysen uber die Limitationen des menschlichen Auges hinaus. Somit dient es als neues Diagnostikinstrument der optischen Eigenschaften verschiedener Gewebe. Im Gegensatz zu anderen intraoperativen bildgebenden Methoden ist HSI kontaktlos, nichtinvasiv und bedarf keiner Kontrastmittelapplikation. Die Messungen nehmen nur wenige Sekunden in Anspruch und storen somit die Operationsablaufe unwesentlich. Erste HSI-Anwendungen in der Viszeralchirurgie sind vielversprechend mit dem Potenzial optimierter Ergebnisse. Aktuelle Konzepte, Moglichkeiten und neue Perspektiven der HSI-Technologie sowie deren Limitationen werden in dieser Arbeit diskutiert.

Esophageal carcinoma is the eighth most common cancer worldwide. Esophageal resection with gastric pull-up is a potentially curative therapeutic option. After this procedure, the specimen is examined by the pathologist to confirm complete removal of the cancer. An intraoperative analysis of the resectate would be less time-consuming and therefore improve patient safety. Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) is a relatively new modality, which has shown promising results for the detection of tumors. Automatic approaches could support the surgeon in the visualization of tumor margins. Therefore, we evaluated four supervised classification algorithms: random forest, support vector machines (SVM), multilayer perceptron, and k-nearest neighbors to differentiate malignant from healthy tissue based on HSI recordings of esophago-gastric resectates in 11 patients. The best performances were obtained with a cancerous tissue detection of 63% sensitivity and 69% specificity with the SVM. In a leave-one patient-out cross-validation, the classification showed larger performance differences according to the patient data used. In less than 1 s, data classification and visualization was shown. In this work, we successfully tested several classification algorithms for the automatic detection of esophageal carcinoma in resected tissue. A larger data set and a combination of several methods would probably increase the performance. Moreover, the implementation of software tools for intraoperative tumor boundary visualization will further support the surgeon during oncologic operations.

BACKGROUND: Achalasia is a primary oesophageal motility disorder. Although aetiology remains mainly unknown, a genetic risk variant, rs28688207 in HLA-DQB1, showed strong achalasia association suggesting involvement of immune-mediated processes in the pathogenesis. High-resolution manometry recognises three types of achalasia. The aim of our study was to perform the first genotype-phenotype analysis investigating the frequency of rs28688207 across the high-resolution manometry subtypes. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional retrospective study. Achalasia patients from tertiary centres in the Czech Republic (n = 163), Germany (n = 114), Greece (n = 70) and controls were enrolled. All subjects were genotyped for the rs28688207 insertion. The Kruskal–Wallis test was used for the genotype-phenotype analysis. RESULTS: A total of 347 achalasia patients (type I – 89, II – 210, III – 48) were included. The overall frequency of the rs28688207 was 10.3%. The distribution of the insertion was significantly different across the high-resolution manometry subtypes (p = 0.038), being most prevalent in type I (14.6%), followed by type II (9.5%) and III (6.3%). CONCLUSION: The frequency of the HLA-DQB1 insertion differs among high-resolution manometry achalasia subtypes. The insertion is most prevalent in type I, suggesting that immune-mediated mechanisms triggered by the insertion may play a more prominent role in the pathogenesis of this subtype.

Purpose Gastric cancer (GC) patients with peritoneal metastasis (PM) have poor prognosis. Pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy (PIPAC) in combination with systemic chemotherapy is a novel treatment option for patients in stage IV of the disease. Materials and methods Between November 2015 and June 2018, prospective data collection was performed in 24 patients with GC and PM (median age, 57; range, 44-75 years). These patients underwent 46 PIPAC procedures with a median number of 2 interventions per patient (range, 1-6). A laparoscopic access was used and a combined therapy of cisplatin and doxorubicin aerosol was administered. Results The median peritoneal carcinomatosis index before the 1st PIPAC was 14 (range, 2-36), and the median ascites volume in patients before the 1st PIPAC was 100 mL (range, 0-6 mL, 300 mL). Eleven patients, who received 2 or more PIPAC procedures, had decreased and stable volumes of ascites, while only 3 patients displayed increasing volume of ascites. The median overall survival was 121 days (range, 66-625 days) after the 1st PIPAC procedure, while 8 patients who received more than 3 PIPAC procedures had a median survival of 450 days (range, 206-481 days) (P=0.0376). Conclusions Our data show that PIPAC is safe and well tolerated, and that the production of ascites can be controlled by PIPAC in GC patients. Patients, who received 2 or more PIPAC procedures, reported a stable overall quality of life. Further studies are required to document the significance of PIPAC as a palliative multimodal therapy. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03100708.

The surgical treatment of gastric cancer has arrived at a turning point towards the routine application of minimally invasive techniques. After the first results of prospective randomized trials from Asia confirmed the surgical and oncological safety, the latest results of international trials provided evidence for minimally invasive gastrectomy of advanced gastric cancer in a multimodal setting. A new addition in the field of minimally invasive procedures is robotic-assisted surgical techniques, which have already been implemented for these indications in many centers in Germany. The technical advantages that are applicable in the robotics setting in comparison to laparoscopy lead to a rapid dissemination of the procedure but still need to be evaluated in controlled trials. Further developments for the surgical treatment of gastric cancer are found in the field of intraoperative imaging procedures. In this field various technologies are available, such as fluorescence imaging using a near-infrared camera, which requires the use of a fluorescent agent or the hyperspectral camera system, which does not require the application of a fluorophore and merges pictures from visible and non-visible wavelengths to a functional image. It is to be expected that in the future various technological advancements can make a valuable contribution to the surgical treatment of gastric cancer in the clinical routine, especially if they support and facilitate the use of minimally invasive surgical techniques.Die chirurgische Therapie des Magenkarzinoms befindet sich an einem Wendepunkt hin zur routinemäßigen Verwendung minimal-invasiver Techniken. Nachdem erste Ergebnisse asiatischer prospektiv-randomisierter Studien die chirurgische und onkologische Sicherheit belegt haben, besteht mittlerweile auch internationale Evidenz für die minimal-invasive Gastrektomie beim fortgeschrittenen Magenkarzinom im multimodalen Setting. Neu im Bereich der minimal-invasiven Verfahren sind robotisch-assistierte Techniken, die bereits in etlichen Zentren in Deutschland bei dieser Indikation eingesetzt werden. Die technischen Vorteile, die sich im robotischen Setting im Vergleich zur Laparoskopie ergeben, führen zu einer zügigen Verbreitung des Verfahrens, müssen aber noch in kontrollierten Studien bewertet werden. Weitere Entwicklungen auf dem Gebiet der Chirurgie des Magenkarzinoms finden sich im Bereich intraoperativ bildgebender Verfahren. Hier stehen verschiedene Technologien zur Verfügung, wie die Fluoreszenzbildgebung mit Nutzung einer Nahinfrarotkamera und eines Fluoreszenzfarbstoffs oder die Hyperspektralkamera, die ohne Applikation eines Fluorophors weite Bereiche des sichtbaren und nichtsichtbaren Lichts zu funktionellen Bildern fusioniert. Es ist davon auszugehen, dass für die chirurgische Therapie des Magenkarzinoms verschiedene technologische Weiterentwicklungen zukünftig einen wertvollen Beitrag in der klinischen Routine leisten können, insbesondere wenn diese die Verwendung minimal-invasiver Operationstechniken unterstützen und vereinfachen.

The technique of hybrid esophagectomy with systematic 2‑field lymphadenectomy for esophageal cancer showed a significant reduction in postoperative morbidity in a recently published prospective randomized study. This video publication presents the abdominothoracic hybrid procedure with (i) laparoscopic gastrolysis and ischemic conditioning of the stomach and (ii) 2-stage transthoracic esophagectomy with gastric pull-up, intrathoracic gastric tube formation and anastomosis. Intraoperative hyperspectral imaging (HSI) during the thoracic part of the operation is used for identification of the ideally perfused anastomotic region.

Any surgical procedure develops a stress situation for the patient, which can modulate the individual outcome. At present, there is only limited information about stress response in colorectal resections by laparoscopic compared to conventional surgery. Therefore, our objectives were the feasibility and the investigation of stress biomarkers including copeptin and steroid hormones before, during and after colorectal surgery.Eleven patients underwent minimally invasive and ten patients conventionally open colorectal surgery. Blood samples were collected before, during and 24 h after surgery and copeptin, NT-proBNP, cortisol, cortisone, interleukin-6 and glucose were analyzed.Both, minimally invasive and conventional-open colorectal surgery caused a fast but heterogeneous response of stress biomarkers. However, the postoperative decrease of cortisol, cortisone and glucose differed between both groups. The stress biomarkers decreased faster down to baseline after minimally invasive surgery, while in open surgery cortisol, cortisone and glucose did not return to baseline within 24 h after operation.We show in this feasibility study for the first time an increase of copeptin in combination with glucocorticoids as stress biomarkers by open surgery compared to minimally invasive procedures in patients undergoing colorectal surgery. Exceeding an individual threshold of 'stress burden' may have unfavorable effects on the long-time clinical outcome.

Although achalasia presents with typical symptoms such as dysphagia, regurgitation, weight loss, and atypical chest pain, the time until first diagnosis often takes years and is frustrating for patients and nevertheless associated with high costs for the healthcare system. A total of 563 patients were interviewed with confirmed diagnosis of achalasia regarding their symptoms leading to diagnosis along with past clinical examinations and treatments. Included were patients who had undergone their medical investigations in Germany. Overall, 527 study subjects were included (male 46%, female 54%, mean age at time of interview 51 ± 14.8 years). Dysphagia was present in 86.7%, regurgitation in 82.9%, atypical chest pain in 79%, and weight loss in 58% of patients before diagnosis. On average, it took 25 months (Interquartile Range (IQR) 9-65) until confirmation of correct diagnosis of achalasia. Though, diagnosis was confirmed significantly quicker (35 months IQR 9-89 vs. 20 months IQR 8-53; p < 0.01) in the past 15 years. The majority (72.1%) was transferred to three or more specialists. Almost each patient underwent at least one esophagogastroduodenoscopy (94.2%) and one radiological assessment (89.3%). However, esophageal manometry was performed in 70.4% of patients only. The severity of symptoms was independent with regard to duration until first diagnosis (Eckardt score 7.14 ± 2.64 within 12 months vs. 7.29 ± 2.61 longer than 12 months; P = 0.544). Fifty-five percent of the patients primarily underwent endoscopic dilatation and 37% a surgical myotomy. Endoscopic dilatation was realized significantly faster compared to esophageal myotomy (1 month IQR 0-4 vs. 3 months IQR 1-11; p < 0.001). Although diagnosis of achalasia was significantly faster in the past 15 years, it still takes almost 2 years until the correct diagnosis of achalasia is confirmed. Alarming is the fact that although esophageal manometry is known as the gold standard to differentiate primary motility disorders, only three out of four patients had undergone this diagnostic pathway during their diagnostic work-up. Better education of medical professionals and broader utilization of highly sensitive diagnostic tools, such as high-resolution manometry, are strictly necessary in order to correctly diagnose affected patients and to offer therapy faster.

Die Achalasie ist eine Funktionsstorung der Speiserohre, die sich klinisch durch Schluckbeschwerden mit konsekutivem Gewichtsverlust sowie retrosternale Schmerzen bzw. Krampfe und Regurgitationen zeigt. Oft haben die Patienten einen langen Leidensweg hinter sich, bis die korrekte Diagnose gestellt wird.

Esophageal adenocarcinoma (EA) and its precancerous condition Barrett's esophagus (BE) are multifactorial diseases with rising prevalence rates in Western populations. A recent meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) data identified 14 BE/EA risk loci located in non-coding genomic regions. Knowledge about the impact of non-coding variation on disease pathology is incomplete and needs further investigation. The aim of the present study was (i) to identify candidate genes of functional relevance to BE/EA at known risk loci and (ii) to find novel risk loci among the suggestively associated variants through the integration of expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) and genetic association data. eQTL data from two BE/EA-relevant tissues (esophageal mucosa and gastroesophageal junction) generated within the context of the GTEx project were cross-referenced with the GWAS meta-analysis data. Variants representing an eQTL in at least one of the two tissues were categorized into genome-wide significant loci (P < 5?0⁻⁸) and novel candidate loci (5?0⁻⁸ ≤ P ≤ 5?0⁻⁵). To follow up these novel candidate loci, a genetic association study was performed in a replication cohort comprising 1,993 cases and 967 controls followed by a combined analysis with the GWAS meta-analysis data. The cross-referencing of eQTL and genetic data yielded 2,180 variants that represented 25 loci. Among the previously reported genome-wide significant loci, 22 eQTLs were identified in esophageal mucosa and/or gastroesophageal junction tissue. The regulated genes, most of which have not been linked to BE/EA etiology so far, included C2orf43/LDAH, ZFP57, and SLC9A3. Among the novel candidate loci, replication was achieved for two variants (rs7754014, Pcₒmbinₑd = 3.16?0⁻⁷ and rs1540, Pcₒmbinₑd = 4.16?0⁻⁶) which represent eQTLs for CFDP1 and SLC22A3, respectively. In summary, the present approach identified candidate genes whose expression was regulated by risk variants in disease-relevant tissues. These findings may facilitate the elucidation of BE/EA pathophysiology. CA extern

Background: Patients with intestinal cancer (colorectal, appendiceal, and small bowel) with peritoneal metastases (PM) have a poor prognosis. We assessed whether pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy (PIPAC) together with systemic chemotherapy is an effective treatment option for these entities in palliative intent. Methods: Between November 2015 and February 2018, prospective data registry was performed (NCT03100708). Thirteen patients with intestinal cancer (median age 61 years [range 49–77]) underwent 26 PIPAC procedures with a median number of 2 interventions per patient (range 1–6). A chemoaerosol consisting of cisplatin/doxorubicin was administered during standard laparoscopy. Results: The median peritoneal carcinomatosis index according to Sugarbaker before the first PIPAC was 14 (range 2–27), and the median ascites volume was 10 mL (range 0–6300 mL). Six patients who received 2 or more PIPAC procedures had decreased and stable ascites volumes, while only 1 patient displayed increased ascites. The median overall survival was 303 days (range 30–490) after the first PIPAC procedure. Conclusions: PIPAC offers a novel treatment option for patients with PM. Our data show that PIPAC is safe and well-tolerated. Ascites production can be controlled by PIPAC in patients with intestinal cancer. Further studies are required to document the significance of PIPAC within palliative therapy concepts. Trial registration: NCT03100708

Purpose: There is evidence from various surgical specialties that incisional negative pressure wound therapy (iNPWT) might reduce postoperative surgical site infections (SSIs). In visceral and general surgery, there is varying evidence of its efficacy in reducing surgical site infections.Methods: A prospectively registered patient cohort of 43 patients with abdominal wall and visceral surgery received treatment with iNPWT and was compared to a matched retrospective cohort to analyze its effects on SSI occurrence and respective risk factors. Groups were matched by procedure, sex, body mass index and age. We used two different systems of iNPWT: (i) PREVENATM or (ii) self-made epicutaneous iNPWT from common VAC material.Results: We could not find a total reduction in postoperative SSIs by application of iNPWT. But within the iNPWT cohort, patients with self-made iNPWT suffered more often from SSIs compared to the commercial iNPWT subgroup. No patient specific risk factors could be identified to advocate the use of iNPWT.Conclusion: Our data do not support the use of an incisional negative pressure wound therapy on closed wounds in midline laparotomy incisions. Although, differences exist between the commmercial and self-made systems.

Idiopathic achalasia is characterized by a failure of the lower esophageal sphincter to relax due to a loss of neurons in the myenteric plexus(1,2). This ultimately leads to massive dilatation and an irreversibly impaired megaesophagus. We performed a genetic association study in 1,068 achalasia cases and 4,242 controls and fine-mapped a strong MHC association signal by imputing classical HLA haplotypes and amino acid polymorphisms. An eight-residue insertion at position 227-234 in the cytoplasmic tail of HLA-DQ beta 1 (encoded by HLA-DQB1*05:03 and HLA-DQB1*06:01) confers the strongest risk for achalasia (P = 1.73 x 10(-19)). In addition, two amino acid substitutions in the. extracellular domain of HLA-DQ alpha 1 at position 41 (lysine encoded by HLA-DQA1*01:03; P = 5.60 x 10(-10)) and of HLA-DQ beta 1 at position 45 (glutamic acid encoded by HLA-DQB1*03:01 and HLA-DQB1*03:04; P = 1.20 x 10(-9)) independently confer achalasia risk. Our study implies that immune-mediated processes are involved in the pathophysiology of achalasia.

BACKGROUND AND AIM Although an eight-residue insertion in HLA-DQβ1 has been recently identified as a genetic risk factor for idiopathic achalasia, other risk factors are still unknown. In the present study, we carried out an epidemiological survey and a genotype-phenotype (G×P) analysis to gain further insights into the etiology of achalasia. METHODS We obtained medical data from 696 achalasia patients and 410 controls, as well as their first-degree relatives (2543 of patients and 1497 of controls). For the G×P analysis, we stratified the patients into HLA-DQβ1 insertion carriers and noncarriers. RESULTS Our data show that patients are more often affected by viral infections before achalasia onset (P

Summary Autoimmunologic phenomena triggered by CD8-positive cytotoxic T cells may be involved in the pathogenesis of achalasia, but the pathogenic mechanisms generally remain unknown, and the concomitant histopathologic changes in the esophageal epithelium in achalasia are incompletely described. This study was designed to characterize the inflammation within the esophageal epithelium of these patients. We collected 72 esophageal specimens from 38 consecutive patients with achalasia (16 men, 22 women) representing different disease stages. The inflammatory cells were characterized immunohistochemically. Seven end-stage disease esophagectomy specimens were also included. Our data show a T-cell–rich inflammatory response predominantly composed of CD4-positive T cells with an overall CD4/CD8 ratio of 1.82 and only few CD4-CD25-FoxP3–positive regulatory T cells or CD20-positive B cells. Signs of inflammation were most pronounced in the middle esophagus, followed by upper and lower esophagus. Between different stages of disease, there were statistically significant differences among CD25-positive lymphocytes in the upper esophagus and CD4-, CD8-, and CD25-positive lymphocytes in the middle esophagus. The esophageal epithelial inflammation in achalasia seems to be of reactive and unspecific nature and does not reflect the composition of the CD8-dominant inflammatory infiltrate within the muscular esophageal wall in active disease. The statistically significant differences in unspecific inflammation between different stages of disease are more likely due to effects of the dysmotility and cannot be assumed pathognomic for the disease. In conclusion, we assume that it is not possible to diagnose or confirm achalasia by means of esophageal biopsy alone.

Introduction Incisional negative pressure wound therapy (iNPWT) has been of recent interest in different surgical fields as beneficial outcomes on high-risk wounds have been reported. Nevertheless, its mechanisms of function are not widely studied to date. Methods We established two ex vivo setups of iNPWT in porcine and human abdominal wall for measuring pressures within the wound which result from iNPWT application. For pressure measurements, a high-resolution manometry catheter and a balloon catheter probe were used in a wound sealed with either a commercially available PREVENA VAC kit or a self-made iNPWT kit. Furthermore, we evaluated seroma evacuation by iNPWT. Results Both setups showed similar characteristics of pressure curves within the wound when applying increasing negative pressures. Application of high pressures did not result in a similar increase in wound pressure. Only subtotal evacuation of seroma by iNPWT application (about 75% of volume) could be detected. Conclusion Our ex vivo model of iNPWT in porcine and human abdominal wall could show reproducible measurements of pressures within the wounds in both types of tissue. As intrawound pressures did not increase in the same way as the applied negative pressure, we suggest that our results do not advocate the idea of using iNPWT for wound care especially as seroma evacuation remains insufficient.

Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) is a relatively new method used in image-guided and precision surgery, which has shown promising results for characterization of tissues and assessment of physiologic tissue parameters. Previous methods used for analysis of preconditioning concepts in patients and animal models have shown several limitations of application. The aim of this study was to evaluate HSI for the measurement of ischemic conditioning effects during esophagectomy. Intraoperative hyperspectral images of the gastric tube through the mini-thoracotomy were recorded from n = 22 patients, 14 of whom underwent laparoscopic gastrolysis and ischemic conditioning of the stomach with two-step transthoracic esophagectomy and gastric pull-up with intrathoracic anastomosis after 3–7 days. The tip of the gastric tube (later esophagogastric anastomosis) was measured with HSI. Analysis software provides a RGB image and 4 false color images representing physiologic parameters of the recorded tissue area intraoperatively. These parameters contain tissue oxygenation (StO2), perfusion—(NIR Perfusion Index), organ hemoglobin (OHI), and tissue water index (TWI). Intraoperative HSI of the gastric conduit was possible in all patients and did not prolong the regular operative procedure due to its quick applicability. In particular, the tissue oxygenation of the gastric conduit was significantly higher in patients who underwent ischemic conditioning ( $${\overline {{{\text{St}}{{\text{O}}_2}}} _{_{{{\text{Precond}}.}}}}$$ = 78%; $${\overline {{{\text{St}}{{\text{O}}_2}}} _{_{{{\text{NoPrecond}}.}}}}$$ = 66%; p = 0.03). HSI is suitable for contact-free, non-invasive, and intraoperative evaluation of physiological tissue parameters within gastric conduits. Therefore, HSI is a valuable method for evaluating ischemic conditioning effects and may contribute to reduce anastomotic complications. Additional studies are needed to establish normal values and thresholds of the presented parameters for the gastric conduit anastomotic site.

Background: Indications for benign esophageal surgery and postoperative follow-up need to be highly elaborated with differentiated and structured algorithms, based on objective functional workup in the esophageal laboratory. Functional outcome is of utmost interest and has to be driven by the need for comprehensive but purposeful diagnostic methods. Methods: Preoperative diagnostic workup procedures by the functional laboratory include 24-h pH-monitoring, impedance testing, and high-resolution manometry (HRM) - in addition to upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and barium swallow/timed barium esophagogram. Results: The most frequent indications for benign esophageal surgery are gastroesophageal reflux disease and achalasia; quite rare indications are esophageal diverticula and benign tumors. Esophageal motility testing in addition to 24-h pH-monitoring is crucial before antireflux surgery (ARS) in order to rule out ineffective esophageal motility and to tailor the wrap. With respect to achalasia surgery, the exact type of achalasia (I-III) has to be labeled according to the Chicago classification, and other motility disorders have to be excluded. The postoperative functional evaluation in the early phase (6 months) after either ARS or Heller's myotomy serves as the new baseline motility testing in case of later occurring disturbances in the follow-up. Conclusion: A complete and proper preoperative esophageal function assessment is crucial in order to rule out a primary motility disorder and to avoid postoperative functional complications.

Nach einem nur zur Halfte erholsamen Tag nachtdienstfrei – Frau Dr. Hauenstein hat den Tag genutzt, um Schlaf nachzuholen, die vollig unordentliche Wohnung aufzuraumen und endlich mal wieder mit einer guten Freundin einen Kaffee trinken zu gehen – kommt Herr Poivoda direkt nach der Morgenbesprechung zu ihr: „Frau Hauenstein, konnten Sie heute fur mich die Allgemeine Sprechstunde ubernehmen? Am Vormittag kommt der Vertreter der Firma Stympus, um die neuen Laparoskopie-Instrumente vorzustellen. Sie wissen doch … Vielen Dank!“ „Ich – alleine – in der Allgemeinen Sprechstunde? Na das kann ja heiter werden. Vielleicht hilft mir ja Yasemin Gundel aus der Nachbarkabine“, denkt sich Frau Hauenstein, wahrend sie sich auf den Weg macht.

Esophagectomy for cancer is a highly complex and demanding two-cavity procedure associated with a considerable morbidity and mortality. There are several controversies with regard to the optimal risk and complication management. Strategies include patient selection, optimization of malnutrition, hospital and surgeon volume, intraoperative anesthesiological and surgical measures, and postoperative management of complications. In this article, we review the literature on these aspects that have an impact on outcomes after esophagectomy.