Self-expanding metallic stents for palliation and as a bridge to minimally invasive surgery in colorectal obstruction.

Background And Objectives: Acute colorectal obstruction is a potentially life-threatening emergency that requires immediate surgical treatment. Emergency procedures had an associated mortality rate of 10% to 30%. This encouraged development of other options, most notably self-expanding metallic stents.

Failed restrictive surgery: is sleeve gastrectomy a good revisional procedure?

The aim of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of converting failed restrictive procedures such as laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB), non-adjustable gastric banding (NAGB), and vertical banded gastroplasty (VBG) to laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG). A prospective database was maintained of 32 patients who failed restrictive procedures. Twenty-six patients failed LAGB, three patients failed NAGB, one of which was performed open, and three patients failed VBG.

Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy: a retrospective review of 1- and 2-year results.

Introduction: Recently, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) has been added as a surgical treatment for obesity. We report our 1- and 2-year results with LSG.

Methods: From September 2005, we have performed 247 LSGs.

Clinical experience of transoral suturing for an endoluminal vertical gastroplasty: 1-year follow-up in 64 patients.

Background: Bariatric surgery for severe obesity has demonstrated significant health benefits, but it is not without complications. Transoral approaches to weight loss offer a minimally invasive option.

Objective: To evaluate the safety and feasibility of a transoral suturing procedure for weight loss.

EUS-guided fine needle aspiration of the liver: indications, yield, and safety based on an international survey of 167 cases.

Background: The liver is a common site of metastases for various malignancies. EUS-guided fine needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) of liver masses has only been reported in small series from single centers.

Methods: A retrospective questionnaire was sent by e-mail to 130 EUS-FNA centers around the world regarding indications, complications, and findings of EUS-FNA of the liver.