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. 2023 Mar 15;13(6):1112.
doi: 10.3390/diagnostics13061112.

Outcomes of Double Balloon-Enteroscopy in Elderly vs. Adult Patients: A Retrospective 16-Year Single-Centre Study

Margherita Trebbi  1 , Cesare Casadei  1 , Silvia Dari  1 , Andrea Buzzi  1 , Mario Luciano Brancaccio  1 , Valentina Feletti  1 , Alessandro Mussetto  1
Affiliations

Outcomes of Double Balloon-Enteroscopy in Elderly vs. Adult Patients: A Retrospective 16-Year Single-Centre Study

Margherita Trebbi et al. Diagnostics (Basel). .

Abstract

Background and Aim: Double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE) is a well-established procedure for direct visualisation of the entire small bowel mucosa, and, in contrast with other imaging techniques, allows to perform biopsies and therapeutic interventions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the indications, diagnostic yield, therapeutic yield, and complications of DBE in a cohort of consecutive patients according to patients' age. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of consecutive patients who underwent DBE in our endoscopy unit between January 2006 and December 2021. Results: A total of 387 consecutive patients who underwent 460 DBE procedures were included. Mean age of the patients was 63 years. The overall diagnostic yield was 67.6%; vascular lesions were the predominant endoscopic findings (31.5%), followed by polyps or neoplastic masses (17.6%). Older patients (≥65 years) showed statistically higher rates of clinically relevant findings than adult patients (18-65 years) (p = 0.001). Crohn's disease and polyps or neoplastic masses were more frequent in the younger group (p = 0.009 and p = 0.066, respectively), while vascular lesions and non-specific inflammation were the most common findings in the older group (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001, respectively). The therapeutic intervention rate was 31.7%. Rates of endoscopic treatment were significantly higher in the older group (p < 0.001). Total complications occurred in five procedures (1.1%). Conclusion: In clinical practice, DBE is an efficient diagnostic and therapeutic tool with a high safety profile, particularly in the elderly population.

Keywords: capsule endoscopy; double-balloon enteroscopy; elderly; enteroscopy; small bowel endoscopy.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Examples of pathological findings. (a) Jejunal hamartoma. (b) Jejunal lymphoma. (c) Meckel’s diverticulum. (d) Jejunal Crohn’s disease. (e) Jejunal angioectasia (f) Jejunal angioectasia after treatment with argon plasma coagulation.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Difference in term of diagnostic yield between elderly and adults.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Difference in term of therapeutic yield between elderly and adults.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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