Blue laser imaging: a new image-enhanced endoscopy for the diagnosis of colorectal lesions

BACKGROUND Image-enhanced endoscopy enables real-time differential diagnosis of colorectal lesions through the observation of microvascular architecture. PURPOSE To evaluate the efficacy of using blue laser imaging (BLI) for capillary pattern analysis in the differential diagnosis of neoplastic and non-neoplastic lesions. PATIENTS AND METHODS This prospective study included 920 consecutive superficial lesions diagnosed in 457 patients. The capillary pattern was analysed using BLI-bright magnification on the basis of the Teixeira classification. Histopathology was used as the reference standard. RESULTS The adenoma detection rate was 42.3%, with a mean of 0.95 adenomas per patient. Neoplastic lesions were predominant (70.3%), of which 33 (5.1%) had advanced histology. Neoplastic progression was significantly increased in patients aged at least 50 years, in lesions at least 10 mm and in lesions located in the right colon (P