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Objectives: Argon plasma coagulation (APC) of gastric inlet patches of the cervical esophagus (GIP) has been shown to relieve the globus sensation. This study aimed to investigate the long-term effects of APC therapy on a variety of laryngopharyngeal symptoms., Methods: Patients with laryngopharyngeal symptoms who had undergone endoscopic GIP eradication via APC therapy were eligible for a retrospective observational cohort study. Symptom relief was assessed by a five-grade scale during a structured interview. Statistical analysis included ANOVA, the chi-squared and t-test., Results: A total of 45 patients (61.0 (52.0; 69.0) years, 26 (57.8%) female) were included after a follow-up time of 85.0 (55.3; 111.0) months. Symptoms included dysphagia (56.0%), dysphonia (51.0%), hoarseness (76.0%), the necessity of throat clearing (73.0%), globus sensation (56.0%) and heartburn (71.0%). Complete GIP eradication was achieved after one session in 25 (55.6%), repetitive sessions were needed in the remaining cases. Fourteen patients (31.1%) reported a very strong, 11 (24.4%) a strong and 8 patients (17.8%) an intermediate improvement; five patients did not benefit. The most apparent improvement was seen regarding hoarseness (from 2.6 ± 1.7 to 1.2 ± 1.3), the necessity of throat clearing (from 2.6 ± 1.7 to 1.1 ± 1.3), globus sensation (from 2.0 ± 1.9 to 0.9 ± 1.3) and heartburn (from 2.5 ± 1.8 to 1.4 ± 1.6). Adverse events included post-endoscopic pain (n = 6, 13.3%) and purulent pharyngitis (n = 2, 4.4%)., Conclusions: The APC therapy of GIP is safe and leads to long-term relief of laryngopharyngeal symptoms in carefully selected patients., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Cancer is a major cause of death in patients with spinal cord injury (SCI). Preventive strategies, such as colonoscopy, deal with higher burdens that may lead to lower quality., Aims: The primary objective was to evaluate the adenoma detection rate. Secondary objectives were to investigate other quality indicators regarding bowel preparation, sedation, and endoscopy., Methods: Consecutive SCI patients who had undergone colonoscopy from 2003 to 2014 were assigned to a control group matched for age, gender, and year of procedure and reviewed retrospectively., Results: Bowel preparation lasted longer (3.6 ± 1.5 vs. 1.2 ± 0.6 days, p = 0.001), achieved unsatisfactory cleansing results more often (23.7 vs. 3.6%) and caused more adverse events in 236 SCI compared to 414 control patients. Colonoscopy needed a longer time (36.9 vs. 25.0 min) and remained incomplete more often (24.6 vs. 4.6%), resulting in more re-colonoscopies (14.8 vs. 4.3%). Endoscopy- and sedation-related adverse events were equal. However, neither overall nor size-dependent polyp (30.9 vs. 34.8%), adenoma (21.2 vs. 21.0%), advanced adenoma (6.8 vs. 7.2%), or cancer (1.7 vs. 2.0%) detection rates differed., Conclusion: Despite intensified protocols, bowel preparation shows inferior results in SCI patients; colonoscopy needs more effort to succeed but achieves a comparable quality.

Background: Crohn's disease (CD) leads to bowel damage and surgery in a significant proportion of patients., Aims: The aim of the study was to evaluate the predictive value of creeping fat assessed by small bowel MRI in CD patients., Methods: CD patients undergoing small bowel MRI were included in a retrospective observational cohort study. Clinical findings were extracted and correlated with radiological outcome measures. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess predictors associated with a complicated course and surgery within 2 years and long-term follow-up., Results: Ninety patients (49% female, median follow-up 93 months) were included. Creeping fat was identified in 21.1%. Of these patients, 68% and 79% developed bowel damage (p < .05) and 42% and 63% of patients revealing creeping fat underwent surgery within 2 years following MRI and total follow-up, respectively. The presence of creeping fat [odds ratio (OR) 4.0], inflammatory stenosis (OR 3.7), multisegmental (small) bowel (OR 4.5 and 3.8), and proximal small bowel inflammation (OR 5.0) were associated with inferior outcome (p < .05) in a univariate analysis. Creeping fat was independently associated with a disabling course, bowel damage, and surgery (OR 3.5 each, p < .05) in a multivariate analysis model., Conclusion: Creeping fat identified by small bowel MRI is associated with a complicated course and abdominal surgery in CD. Our data adds evidence that small bowel MRI facilitates risk stratification in order to define a patient at risk of disease-related complications in CD. [DRKS00011727, www.germanctr.de/ ].