Reviews
Device-assisted enteroscopy: An update on techniques, clinical indications and safety
After more than 15 years since its introduction into clinical practice, indications for device-assisted enteroscopy have greatly expanded. Alongside the consolidated indications such as the diagnosis and treatment of small bowel bleeding, Crohn’s disease, hereditary polyposis, small-bowel tumors and complicated celiac disease, device-assisted enteroscopy is nowadays largely used to perform endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography in patients with altered anatomy, stent placement, retrieval of foreign bodies, direct insertion of jejunal feeding tubes, and in selected cases of incomplete colonoscopy.Systematic review: Features, diagnosis, management and prognosis of hepatic hematoma, a rare complication of ERCP
Hepatic hematoma (HH) is a rare but severe adverse event following endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP).Covered metal stents in endoscopic therapy of biliary complications after liver transplantation
There is growing interest in using covered self-expandable metal stents for the treatment of benign biliary conditions, and the presence of anastomotic biliary strictures and leaks after liver transplantation provide a valuable opportunity for testing them. The performance of the stents is encouraging, and the technical success rate is high. They provide larger diameter dilation and are easily removed, and can potentially limit costs by reducing the number of procedures needed to treat anastomotic biliary strictures.An overview of hereditary pancreatitis
Hereditary pancreatitis is a rare cause of chronic pancreatitis. The prevalence was evaluated to 0.3/100 000 in Western Countries. Genetic disorders are due to mutations of the PRSS1 gene on the long arm of the chromosome 7, encoding for the cationic trypsinogen. The inheritance pattern is autosomal dominant with an incomplete penetrance (80%). Since 1996, more than 30 mutations were found. The three more common mutations are R122H, N29I and A16V. First symptoms begin since childhood, mainly before 10 years old.Endoscopic Ultrasound-guided cholangiopancreatography and rendezvous techniques
Endoscopic ultrasound-guided cholangiopancreatography (EUCP) has become an alternative to percutaneous drainage or surgery in patients with obstructive jaundice or pancreatic obstruction after failed conventional ERCP. The different techniques of biliary and pancreatic drainage are described and the literature is reviewed. Due to the technical complexity associated with this procedure, it should be reserved for endoscopists at tertiary care centers with advanced training in both EUS and ERCP.
