Tolerance and efficacy of an air-filled balloon in non-morbidly obese patients: results of a prospective multicenter study.

Background: Intragastric balloons have been proposed to induce body weight loss in obese subjects. Most studies were performed using liquid-filled balloons. Air-filled balloons may increase digestive tolerance.

Effects of intragastric balloon on gastric emptying and plasma ghrelin levels in non-morbid obese patients.

Background: Intragastric balloons have been proposed to induce weight loss in obese subjects. The consequences of the balloon on gastric physiology remain poorly studied. We studied the influence of an intragastric balloon on gastric emptying and ghrelin secretion in non-morbid obese patients.

Intragastric balloon for "non-morbid" obesity: a retrospective evaluation of tolerance and efficacy.

Background: One potential indication for intra-gastric balloon is weight reduction for mild to moderate obesity. The authors evaluated retrospectively the tolerance and efficacy of the BioEnterics intragastric balloon (BIB).

Methods: From February 1998 to July 2001, an intragastric balloon was placed under endoscopic control in 176 patients (mean BMI 31 kg/m(2)).

Long-term follow-up of patients with endoscopic treatment of sporadic adenomas of the papilla of vater.

Background And Study Aims: Knowledge about the long-term outcome of patients after endoscopic treatment of ampullary adenomas remains poor, although surgical series have suggested that the initial endoscopic evaluation of these diseases might overlook cancer foci developed in adenomas. The aim of this study was to evaluate retrospectively the long-term outcome in patients with ampullary adenomas treated endoscopically, with a focus on the possible development of cancer.

Patients And Methods: The study included 24 patients (median age 59 years, range 34 - 84) with macroscopically benign adenomas of the papilla of Vater treated using mainly laser photodestruction between 1983 and 1996.

Methods, indications, and results of percutaneous choledochoscopy. A series of 161 procedures.

Objective: Nonsurgical methods for evaluation and treatment of the biliary tree are usually done under fluoroscopic guidance. Direct visualization of the bile ducts, that is, choledochoscopy, could provide a more precise method with which to perform these maneuvers. The methods, indications, and results of percutaneous choledochoscopy are discussed from a series of 161 procedures performed in 123 consecutive patients.

Value of endobiliary brush cytology and biopsies for the diagnosis of malignant bile duct stenosis: results of a prospective study.

Background: Before considering a nonsurgical method of management of a bile duct stenosis, a tissue diagnosis is highly desirable. In a prospective study we have evaluated the feasibility and reliability of endobiliary brush cytology and biopsies performed at the time of endoscopic retrograde cholangiography.

Methods: Two hundred thirty-three consecutive patients underwent an attempt at endobiliary brush cytology and biopsies of bile duct stenosis when no mass was detected on ultrasound and CT scan.

Endoscopic stenting for pain relief in chronic pancreatitis: results of a standardized protocol.

Background: Pancreatic endoscopic stenting aims to relieve abdominal pain due to chronic pancreatitis. Optimal treatment modalities and post-treatment effects have still to be determined. The object of this study was to investigate the results of a standardized protocol of endoscopic stenting.

Biopsies of the ampullary region in patients suspected to have sphincter of Oddi dysfunction.

Tumors of the ampulla of Vater that develop within the ampulla can go unrecognized during endoscopic examination. Patients with intra-ampullary tumors may present with a clinical picture very similar to that of sphincter of Oddi dysfunction. We wished to determine what percentage of patients initially diagnosed with sphincter of Oddi dysfunction are later found to have an intra-ampullary neoplasm.

Endoscopic treatment of biliary tract fistulas.

Endoscopic therapy was attempted in 24 patients with spontaneous or postoperative persistent biliary fistulas. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiography demonstrated the site of the fistula in 22 cases. Sphincterotomy or biliary stent placement resulted in rapid resolution of the fistula in 16 of 24 patients.

Contribution of endoscopy to diagnosis and treatment of tumors of the ampulla of Vater.

In a series of 52 patients presenting with tumors of the ampulla of Vater, endoscopic procedures, especially endoscopic sphincterotomy and snare biopsies, permitted histologic classifications as follows: adenocarcinoma: 50%, adenoma: 35%, and adenoma with cancer: 15%. In 37% of cases, the papilla was normal endoscopically and the tumor was detected only after sphincterotomy. Destruction of adenomas by snare resection, laser photoradiation, or both after sphincterotomy was attempted in 11 patients.

Biliary lithiasis: combined endoscopic and surgical treatment.

A combined endoscopic and surgical procedure was performed in 69 patients suffering from gallbladder lithiasis with suspected associated lithiasis of the common bile duct (CBD). The procedure was spread over two days: Day 1 - Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) revealed choledocholithiasis in 50 cases and papillary sclerosis in 4 cases. In 15 patients, the common bile duct was found to be normal.

Endoscopic retrograde cholangiography and sphincterotomy for complicated hepatic hydatid cyst.

We report on the results of 20 endoscopic cholangiographies indicated for hepatic hydatid disease: 14 for pre-operative investigation and 6 for post-surgical complications. In 4 out of 14 cases, endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERC) was not an effective procedure for the pre-operative diagnosis of complicated hepatic hydatid cyst in the biliary tract. Endoscopic sphincterotomy was performed without complications in 9 patients and permitted pre- or post-surgical removal of intrabiliary hydatid fragments in 6, successful treatments of 2 post-surgical external biliary fistulae and in association with transhepatic drainage, improvement of the clinical and biological course of one case of secondary sclerosing cholangitis.

Evaluation of a combined percutaneous-endoscopic procedure for the treatment of choledocholithiasis and benign papillary stenosis.

In 19 patients suffering from choledocholithiasis or papillary stenosis, retrograde cholangiography or sphincterotomy failed because of anatomic abnormalities. In such cases, sphincterotomy was then performed with the assistance of a percutaneous catheter. Two complications were observed: moderate bleeding from the transhepatic drain, and a retroperitoneal perforation needing surgery.

Benign tumors of oesophagus: value of endoscopy.

Endoscopic examination carried out in 20,000 patients allowed 7 benign tumors of the oesophagus to be detected. Four of them were intramural tumors corresponding to leiomyomas. Guided biopsies are not sufficient to assure an accurate diagnosis, but a mucosal lesion, particularly a carcinoma, should be ruled out.

[Fine-needle percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography. 84 cases].

The authors report the results of 84 percutaneous transhepatic cholangiographies using a fine needle, describing the technique. Beyond the context of jaundice, failure of or inadequate opravenous cholangiography requires the use of other radiological techniques. By virtue of its simplicity, its usually good tolerance and its results, percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography has a place of choice in these indications.

Gastric clearance of serum albumin in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis.

Gastric albumin clearance studies were carried out in 26 patients with alcoholic cirrhosis and in 10 control subjects. The mean clearance was significantly higher in patients than in control subjects. An increased protein gastric loss in cirrhotic patients was observed only in presence of gastritis.