Background and Aim: Non-ampullary duodenal epithelial tumors (NADET) are rare, and there is no consensus regarding treatment indications and methods for superficial lesions. Records of patients with NADET over a 10-year period were reviewed to clarify the present state of clinical management of superficial NADET.Methods: Data related to clinicopathological characteristics, selection of treatment, and outcomes were collected and analyzed.Results: Of 95 lesions, 73 were either adenoma or mucosal or submucosal invasive cancers. Half of the patients with a biopsy diagnosis of low-grade adenoma were followed up without treatment. Results of endoscopic resection (ER), including endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) or endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for patients with high-grade adenoma (HGA) or cancer showed a high en bloc resection rate. However, the risk of perforation was high among ESD cases. Surgery was done for patients with a diagnosis of cT1a or cT1b cancer, of which half underwent local resection. An upgrade in pathology between preoperative biopsy and final pathology was observed in 11/13 lesions with a biopsy diagnosis of HGA.Conclusions: Superficial NADET, including HGA, should be treated endoscopically or surgically. For lesions with no risk of metastasis, local resection by EMR may be reasonable or clinically sufficient regarding the high complication rate of ESD. However, surgery remains a standard treatment for lesions that are technically impossible to remove by ER.

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PEG for bowel decompression in patients with malignant obstruction can be carried out with an acceptable risk of minor complications. In combination with a trans-gastrostomy intestinal tube insertion, the elimination of nasal intubation can be achieved in most patients.

Background and AimOne of the main concerns related to peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) is postoperative gastroesophageal reflux (GER). The two penetrating vessels (TPVs) that are found at the boundary between the circular and oblique muscles in the posterior cardia wall have been suggested to be a good indicator of the optimal distal extent of POEM. However, the effect of performing myotomy using the TPVs as an anatomical reference on the frequency of post‐POEM GER has not been studied.MethodsThis study involved consecutive patients who underwent POEM for the treatment of achalasia between April 2015 and June 2017. All enrolled patients underwent POEM in the 5 o'clock position and were divided into two groups: the conventional line group (CL group, n = 31), in which the TPVs were not exposed during submucosal tunnel dissection in the cardia, and the TPVs line group (TPVs group, n = 83), in which the TPVs were exposed and gastric myotomy was performed along the right side of the TPVs to preserve the oblique muscle. Examinations for post‐POEM GER were conducted 3 months after the POEM.ResultsThe frequency of grade B or higher reflex esophagitis was 26/83 (31.3%) in the TPVs group and 18/31 (58.1%) in the CL group (P = 0.017). Nine of 83 patients (10.8%) had GER symptoms in the TPVs group, and six of 31 (19.4%) had GER symptoms in the CL group (P = 0.23).ConclusionsThe novel myotomy method preserving oblique muscle using TPVs as anatomical landmarks significantly reduced the frequency of post‐POEM GER.

A 73-year-old female with a 6-month history of progressive dysphagia and chest pain was referred to our hospital. She underwent esophagogastroduodenoscopy, which revealed abnormally strong contractions in the distal esophagus. Esophageal biopsy specimens showed massive eosinophil infiltration into the epithelium, and high-resolution manometry (HRM) also demonstrated abnormally strong contractions in the distal esophagus. Based on these results, she was diagnosed with Jackhammer esophagus (JHE) due to eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE). Treatment was started with 5 mg/day of prednisolone (PSL), and the number of peripheral blood eosinophils quickly decreased without any improvement in the patient's dysphagia. Esophageal biopsy specimens obtained after the PSL treatment showed the disappearance of eosinophils from the epithelium. However, abnormally strong contractions were still detected on HRM. Per-oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) was performed to treat the JHE. Interestingly, the intraoperative esophageal muscle biopsy sample demonstrated massive eosinophil infiltration into the muscle layer. After the POEM, the patient's symptoms improved, and abnormal contractions were no longer detected on HRM. The current case suggests that when EoE combined with an esophageal motility disorder are refractory to steroid therapy, clinicians should be aware that motility disorders can develop due to eosinophil infiltration deep into the esophageal muscularis propria.