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Background/aims: : This study aimed to review the indications, methods, cooperation, complications, and outcomes of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG)., Methods: : Questionnaires were sent to 200 hospitals, of which 62 returned their questionnaires, with a response rate of approximately 30%. Descriptive statistics were calculated to analyze the responses to the questionnaires., Results: : In 2019, a total of 1,052 PEGs were performed in 1,017 patients at 62 hospitals. The main group who underwent PEG was older adult patients with brain disease, particularly stroke. Nutritional supply was an important purpose of the PEG procedure. "The pull method" was the most commonly used for initial PEG insertion. The complications related to PEG were mostly mild, with leakage being the most common. Patients who underwent PEG procedures were primarily educated regarding the post-procedure management and complications related to PEG. Preoperative meetings were skipped at >50% of the institutions. Regarding the cooperation between the nutrition support team (NST) and the physician performing PEG, few endoscopists answered that they cooperated with NST before and after PEG. Moreover, the rate of NST certification obtained by physicians performing PEG and the frequency of attendance at NST-related conferences were relatively low., Conclusions: : This study shows a similar trend to that found in the previous PEG guidelines. However, it covers new aspects, including team-based work for PEG procedure, nutrition support, and education for patients and guardians. Therefore, each medical institution needs to select an appropriate method considering the medical environment and doctor's abilities.

Background: Endoscopic evaluation of the stomach is essential for preoperative planning and post-surgical surveillance for various diseases of the stomach, including malignancy. The gastroscopy education program for surgeons is currently in its infancy and is not systematically organized in Korea. This study aimed to introduce the first systematic gastroscopy education program for surgeons in Korea., Methods: The gastroscopy education program entitled "Gastroscopy School for Surgeons (GSS)" comprised of theoretical education, dry lab hands-on training, and clinical practice. All participants were beginners without any gastroscopy experience. Clinical practice started after the completion of the theoretical and dry lab training. The gastroscopy practices utilized simple luminal observation, biopsy, localization using clips or dye injection, and limited therapeutic gastroscopy. The educational performances and surveys from 33 participants were analyzed., Results: The participants consisted of surgical residents, general surgeons, gastrointestinal-specialized surgeons, and physicians. Participants performed a total of 2,272 gastroscopies, 2,008 of which were post-gastrectomy cases. Currently, of the 33 participants, 7 (21.2%) of the participants performed gastroscopy regularly, and 7 (21.2%) occasionally. According to the self-reported survey, one participant assessed their current gastroscopic technique to be at the expert level, and 25 (75.8%) at a proficient level. All participants considered gastroscopy education for surgeons to be necessary, and 28 (84.8%) stated that systematic education is not currently provided in Korea., Conclusion: We introduced the first systematic gastroscopy education program for surgeons in Korea, namely the GSS, which is practical and meets clinical needs. More training centers are needed to expand gastroscopy training among Korean surgeons., Competing Interests: The authors have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose., (© 2022 The Korean Academy of Medical Sciences.)

Background/aims: We aimed to develop an endoscopic scoring system to evaluate gastric atrophy and intestinal metaplasia using narrow-band imaging (NBI) and near focus mode (NFM) to compare endoscopic scores with the Operative link for gastritis assessment (OLGA) and the Operative link for gastric intestinal metaplasia assessment (OLGIM)., Methods: A total of 51 patients who underwent diagnostic esophagogastroduodenoscopy were prospectively enrolled and endoscopic scoring using NBI and NFM was performed. Four areas (the lesser and greater curvatures of the antrum and the lesser and greater curvature side of the corpus) were observed and biopsies were taken. The degree of atrophy was scored from 0 to 2 according to the Kimura-Takemoto classification. The degree of intestinal metaplasia was scored from 0 to 4 according to the location and the extent of the intestinal metaplasia., Results: The correlation coefficient for atrophy between the endoscopic and histologic scores was 0.70 (95% CI: 0.52-0.81 p  < .001) and for intestinal metaplasia, it was 0.75 (95% CI: 0.60-0.85; p  < .001). For atrophic gastritis, an endoscopic score >1 correlated with OLGA stage III and IV with a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and agreement of 88, 74, 75, 87, and 80.4%, respectively, and for intestinal metaplasia, an endoscopic score >1 correlated with high OLGIM stage III and IV with 100, 59, 69, 100, and 78.4%, respectively., Conclusions: Endoscopic scoring for gastric atrophy and intestinal metaplasia using NBI-NFM likely correlates with histologic staging in Korea, a high-risk region for gastric cancer.

Objective: To stratify the postsurgical computed tomography (CT) surveillance based on a risk-scoring system for predicting extragastric recurrence after surgical resection of early gastric cancer (EGC)., Summary of Background Data: Postsurgical CT surveillance should not be routinely performed in all patients because of the low incidence of extragastric recurrence and potential risk of radiation exposure., Methods: Data from 3162 patients who underwent surgical resection for EGC were reviewed to develop a risk-scoring system to predict extragastric recurrence. Risk scores were based on the predictive factors for extragastric recurrence, which were determined using Cox proportional hazard regression model. The risk-scoring system was validated by Uno censoring adjusted C-index. External validation was performed using an independent dataset (n = 430)., Results: The overall incidence of extragastric recurrence was 1.4% (44/3162). Five risk factors (lymph node metastasis, indications for endoscopic resection, male sex, positive lymphovascular invasion, and elevated macroscopic type), which were significantly associated with extragastric recurrence, were incorporated into the risk-scoring system, and the patients were categorized into 2 risk groups. The 10-year extragastric recurrence-free survival differed significantly between low- and high-risk groups (99.7% vs 96.5%; P < 0.001). The predictive accuracy of the risk-scoring system in the development cohort was 0.870 [Uno C-index; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 0.800-0.939]. Discrimination was good after internal (0.859) and external validation (0.782, 0.549-1.000)., Conclusion: This risk-scoring system might be useful to predict extragastric recurrence of EGC after curative surgical resection. We suggest that postsurgical CT surveillance to detect extragastric recurrence should be avoided in the low-risk group.

Background: Gastrostomy tube insertion is beneficial to selected patients, and percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) and percutaneous radiological gastrostomy (PRG) are two of the frequently used methods in gastrostomy. This study aimed to investigate the indications and complications of both PEG and PRG., Methods: This was a retrospective multicenter cohort study. Patients who underwent initial PEG or PRG tube insertion for nutritional purpose between January 2010 and December 2015 at five university hospitals were included in the study. We analyzed the indications and all complications related to gastrostomy, which were divided into the major (systemic or life-threatening) and minor (local and non-life-threatening) categories., Results: A total of 418 patients who underwent PEG (n = 324) and PRG (n = 94) were reviewed. The indications for gastrostomy tube insertion were different and included mainly neurological disease (n = 240, 74.1%) such as cerebrovascular accident in the PEG group (n = 119, 36.7%) and mainly surgical disease (n = 28, 29.8%) such as head and neck cancer (n = 16, 17.0%) in the PRG group (p = 0.05). There were no differences in the minor (16.4% vs. 19.1%, p = 0.52) and major (12.3% vs. 14.9%, p = 0.51) complication rates between the PEG and PRG groups. The risk factors for complications were age [yearly increments; odds ratio (OR) 1.03, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01-1.06], tube diameter (1-Fr increments; OR 1.26, 95% CI 1.01-1.58), insertion time (1-min increments; OR 1.07, 95% CI 1.01-1.13), and neurological disease as the gastrostomy indication (vs. surgical disease; OR 4.61 95% CI 1.47-14.42)., Conclusions: In our study, both PEG and PRG provided a safe route for nutrition delivery despite their different indications. Our data suggest that PEG might be the procedure of choice for patients with medical or neurological disease and PRG for patients with surgical disease in whom PEG is technically difficult or contraindicated.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of sentinel node mapping using a fluorescent dye and visible light in patients with gastric cancer., Background: Recently, fluorescent imaging technology offers improved visibility with the possibility of better sensitivity or accuracy in sentinel node mapping., Methods: Twenty patients with early gastric cancer, for whom laparoscopic distal gastrectomy with standard lymphadenectomy had been planned, were enrolled in this study. Before lymphadenectomy, the patients received a gastrofiberoscopic peritumoral injection of fluorescein solution. The sentinel basin was investigated via laparoscopic fluorescent imaging under blue light (wavelength of 440-490 nm) emitted from an LED curing light. The detection rate and lymph node status were analyzed in the enrolled patients. In addition, short-term clinical outcomes were also investigated., Results: No hypersensitivity to the dye was identified in any enrolled patients. Sentinel nodes were detected in 19 of 20 enrolled patients (95.0%), and metastatic lymph nodes were found in 2 patients. The latter lymph nodes belonged to the sentinel basin of each patient. Meanwhile, 1 patient (5.0%) experienced a postoperative complication that was unrelated to sentinel node mapping. No mortality was recorded among enrolled cases., Conclusions: Sentinel node mapping with visible light fluorescence was a feasible method for visualizing sentinel nodes in patients with early gastric cancer. In addition, this method is advantageous in terms of visualizing the concrete relationship between the sentinel nodes and surrounding structures.

Background/aims: Although surveillance endoscopy is recommended after the treatment of a benign gastric ulcer in Korea, improved survival, secondary to an endoscopic follow-up strategy, is controversial. Thus, the aim of this study was to understand the results of gastric ulcer surveillance endoscopy and to individualize surveillance endoscopy by analyzing known risk factors for gastric cancer., Materials and Methods: In total, 599 (M:F=424:175, median age=55.4 years) patients who were diagnosed with a gastric ulcer and who underwent follow-up endoscopy between January 2003 and August 2014 were retrospectively enrolled in this study. The final results and risk factors of follow-up endoscopy were analyzed., Results: Multivariate analysis of the data between the benign and malignant ulcer groups (benign: malignant=575:24) showed that an elevated border and irregular margins, among other risk factors, were significant indicators of malignancy (p<0.05). Of the 599 patients, 15 (2.5%) were histologically malignant based on the first biopsy results. Nine (1.5%) patients had malignant ulcers on surveillance endoscopy, and all nine were found to have atypia or dysplasia on the first biopsy. Eight of the nine patients had malignant endoscopic features., Conclusion: Surveillance endoscopy for gastric ulcers may be unnecessary, except in cases of malignant and pre-malignant endoscopic features on the initial endoscopy.

Background and Aim: Forrest classification is a valid tool to predict rebleeding rate in peptic ulcer, not in post-endoscopic resection ulcer. We evaluated the delayed bleeding rate in Forrest classification II and III lesions when they were not treated in second-look endoscopy., Methods: Between July 2011 and February 2012, 706 lesions in 656 consecutive patients who underwent second-look endoscopy performed on the second day after endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) were prospectively investigated. Endoscopic findings were described according to Forrest classification, and late delayed bleeding was defined as bleeding from second-look endoscopy to 1 month. We evaluated the rate of late delayed bleeding in untreated Forrest classification II and III lesions during second-look endoscopy., Results: Among the 706 gastric tumors analyzed, late delayed bleeding after ESD occurred in 29 lesions (4.1%). At second-look endoscopy, Forrest I lesions (immediately treated by endoscopic hemostasis) were found in 63 cases [Ia, 8 lesions (1.1%); Ib, 55 lesions (7.8%)]; there was no further bleeding after discharge. Forrest II and III lesions (not treated in second-look endoscopy) were found in 643 cases [IIa, 62 lesions (8.8%); IIb, 119 lesions (16.9%); IIc, 460 lesions (65.2 %); III, 2 lesions (0.3%)]; and there was no significant difference in the late delayed bleeding rate between these groups [IIa, 2/62 (3.2%); IIb, 5/119 (4.2%); IIc and III, 22/462 (4.8%); P = 1.000]., Conclusions: The rate of late delayed bleeding of post-ESD ulcers with non-bleeding visible vessels was not significantly different from that of ulcers with non-visible vessels ( http://cris.nih.go.kr , identifier KCT0000268).

Aim: To investigate the incidence and distribution of second primary cancers (SPCs) in early gastric cancer (EGC) patients who underwent endoscopic resection (ER), compared to advanced gastric cancer (AGC) patients who underwent surgery., Methods: The medical records of 1021 gastric cancer (GC) patients were retrospectively reviewed from January 2006 to December 2010. The characteristics and incidence of SPCs were investigated in those with EGC that underwent curative ER (the EGC group) and those with AGC who underwent curative surgical resection (the AGC group)., Results: We ultimately enrolled 184 patients in the EGC group and 229 patients in the AGC group. A total of 38 of the 413 (9.2%) GC patients had SPCs; the rate was identical in both groups. Of these 38 patients, 18 had synchronous and 20 had metachronous cancers. The most common SPC was lung cancer (18.4%), followed by colorectal cancer (13.2%) and esophageal cancer (13.2%). No significant risk factors were identified for the development of SPCs., Conclusion: Endoscopists should provide close surveillance and establish follow-up programs to ensure SPC detection in GC patients undergoing curative resection regardless of their clinical characteristics.

Background/aims: This study was conducted to evaluate whether medical costs can be reduced using endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) instead of conventional surger-ies in patients with early gastric cancer (EGC)., Methods: Pa-tients who underwent open gastrectomy (OG), laparoscopy-assisted gastrectomy (LAG), and ESD for EGC were recruited from three medical institutions in 2009. For macro-costing, the medical costs for each patient were derived from the ex-penses incurred during the patient's hospital stay and 1-year follow-up. The overall costs in micro-costing were determined by multiplying the unit cost with the resources used during the patients' hospitalization., Results: A total of 194 patients were included in this study. The hospital stay for ESD was 5 to 8 days and was significantly shorter than the 12-day hospital stay for OG or the 11- to 17-day stay for LAG. Using macro-costing, the average medical costs for ESD during the hospital stay ranged from 2.1 to 3.4 million Korean Won (KRW) per patient, and the medical costs for conventional surgeries were estimated to be between 5.1 million and 8.2 million KRW. There were no significant differences in the 1-year follow-up costs between ESD and conventional surger-ies., Conclusions: ESD patients had lower medical costs than those patients who had conventional surgeries for EGC with conservative indications. (Gut Liver, 2015;9174-180).

Background: Little is known about the clinical and oncologic outcomes of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) compared with surgery in elderly patients with early gastric cancer (EGC)., Objective: To evaluate the clinical and oncologic outcomes of ESD compared with surgery in elderly patients with EGC of an expanded indication., Design: Retrospective study with propensity-matched analysis., Setting: University-affiliated tertiary-care hospital, Seoul, South Korea., Patients: A total of 518 patients 70 years of age or older with initial-onset EGC., Interventions: ESD and surgery., Main Outcome Measurements: Clinical outcomes, disease-free survival, and overall survival., Results: In a propensity-matched analysis of 132 pairs, the length of hospital stay of the ESD group was shorter than that of the surgery group (median [interquartile range], 4 [3-4] vs 9 [7-11] days; P < .001). Intensive care unit admission occurred in the surgery group only (7 patients [5.3%]). Two surgery-related deaths occurred in the surgery group (1 splenic artery bleeding and 1 anastomosis site leakage). During follow-up, metachronous lesions developed more often in the ESD group than in the surgery group (12 vs 2 lesions, P = .004). All recurred lesions were successfully treated endoscopically except for 3 patients who refused additional treatment. Overall survival did not differ between the 2 groups (P = .280)., Limitations: Nonrandomized, retrospective study., Conclusions: ESD is a safe procedure in elderly patients with EGC. Although the risk of metachronous lesions is higher in patients who undergo ESD than in those who undergo surgery, overall survival did not differ between the patients who undergo ESD and surgery., (Copyright © 2014 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) improves the quality of life of patients with early gastric cancer (EGC) and dysplasia by preserving gastric function. ESD in the treatment of EGC and dysplasia has become standard in Japan and Korea and is being developed and implemented in many major centers in Asia. With a well-designed prospective study, long-term outcomes of expanded criteria for endoscopic resection of EGC are expected to provide reliable indications for endoscopic treatment. Ongoing and novel clinical investigations of minimally invasive approaches and close collaboration between Western and Asian countries are expected to establish the best way to treat EGC., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Although many epidemiologic studies have shown that Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) eradication has prophylactic effects on gastric cancer, their results are less clear in high-risk populations. We conducted this study to examine whether H. pylori eradication would affect the occurrence of metachronous gastric cancer after endoscopic resection in patients with early gastric cancer., Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 2,089 adults who underwent endoscopic resection of gastric low-grade neoplasia, high-grade neoplasia, or differentiated invasive neoplasia from 2004 to 2008 at Asan Medical Center. Of these, a total of 1,007 patients with early gastric cancer were enrolled in this study. We evaluated the demographic data, the pathology, and the incidence of metachronous recurrence by dividing them into three groups: those without active H. pylori infection (Hp negative group, n=340), those who successfully underwent H. pylori eradication (eradicated group, n=485), and those who failed or did not undergo H. pylori eradication (noneradicated group, n=182)., Results: Metachronous recurrence was diagnosed in 75 patients, including 17 in the Hp, 34 in the eradicated, and 24 in the noneradicated groups. Median time to metachronous recurrence was 18 months (range, 7-75 months). The incidence of metachronous gastric cancer was 10.9 cases per 1,000 person-years in the Hp negative group, 14.7 cases per 1,000 person-years in the eradicated group, and 29.7 cases per 1,000 person-years in the noneradicated group. The hazard ratios in the noneradicated group compared with the Hp negative and eradicated groups were 2.5 (P<0.01) and 1.9 (P=0.02), respectively. H. pylori eradication reduced metachronous recurrence of gastric neoplasm, which was also shown in the secondary analysis of 1,487 patients with low-grade neoplasia and early gastric cancer., Conclusions: Successful H. pylori eradication may reduce the occurrence of metachronous gastric cancer after endoscopic resection in patients with early gastric cancer.

Background: Endoscopic submucosal dissection has become widely used for early gastric cancer with an expanded indication, although there is no strong consensus. We aimed to compare the clinical and long-term oncological outcome after endoscopic submucosal dissection according to indication., Methods: Retrospective review of 1152 patients with 1175 lesions who had undergone endoscopic submucosal dissection for early gastric cancer at tertiary educational hospital in Korea, between March 2005 and November 2011. Of these, 366 and 565 lesions were included in the absolute and expanded indication groups, respectively., Results: En bloc resection rates were not significantly different between the absolute and expanded indication groups. The complete resection rate was higher in the absolute indication group versus the expanded indication group (94.8% vs. 89.9%, respectively; P=0.008). In the expanded indication group, complete resection rate was higher in the differentiated versus undifferentiated tumour subgroups (92.9% vs. 78.4%, respectively; P<0.001). Recurrence rates were 7.7% in the absolute indication group vs. 9.3% in the expanded indication group (P=0.524). Disease-free survival was not significantly different between the two indication groups (P=0.634)., Conclusions: Endoscopic submucosal dissection for early gastric cancer with expanded indication is a feasible approach to disease management. Periodic endoscopic follow-up is necessary to detect cancer recurrence., (Copyright © 2013 Editrice Gastroenterologica Italiana S.r.l. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Endoscopic resection of early gastric cancer is a well-established standard therapy in Japan and Korea, and is increasingly used in other countries. Endoscopic resection should be curative for patients, and safe, easy and effective not only for patients, but also for endoscopists. Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is superior to standard endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) as it is designed to provide en bloc R0 resection regardless of size and/or location. Correct pathological assessment of en bloc resected specimens is crucial for accurate diagnosis and patient stratification for the risk of metastasis. Outcome studies in Japan and Korea, countries with the highest incidence of gastric cancer, have shown that ESD is efficacious in leading to a good long-term outcome; however, ESD requires an experienced endoscopist with a high skill level. Expanded indications for endoscopic resection have been proposed, especially after large en bloc resection have been accomplished using ESD. The use of ESD could be of huge benefit for the management of gastrointestinal superficial neoplasms. However, for ESD to become a viable therapeutic option, it requires close and supportive working relationships between endoscopists, pathologists and surgeons., (© 2013 The Authors. Digestive Endoscopy © 2013 Japan Gastroenterological Endoscopy Society.)

Background: In the surgical treatment of gastric cancer, obesity is known to be a predictive factor for poor early surgical outcomes. To evaluate the more effective modality of laparoscopic gastrectomy in obese patients, we compared the early surgical outcomes of laparoscopy-assisted and totally laparoscopic gastrectomy., Methods: We retrospectively analyzed early surgical outcomes in 1,480 consecutive patients who underwent distal gastrectomy for gastric cancer between April 2004 and July 2010. To compare surgical outcomes of laparoscopy-assisted distal gastrectomy (LADG) with those of totally laparoscopic distal gastrectomy (TLDG) in 76 obese patients (LADG, n = 39; TLDG, n=37), the patients were classified as either obese or nonobese. The obesity was defined using the WHO classification BMI cutoff of 30 kg/m2., Results: In the analysis of surgical outcomes of the LADG group, there were significant differences between the obese and nonobese groups with respect to operative time (P=0.004, obese, 171.8 min; nonobese, 141.0 min), time to first flatus (P=0.027, obese, 3.3 days; nonobese, 3.1 days), commencement of soft diet (P=0.040, obese, 4.6 days; nonobese, 4.0 days), postoperative complication rate (P=0.045, obese, 15.4%; nonobese, 6.5%), and postoperative hospital stay (P=0.014, obese, 8.9 days; nonobese, 7.2 days). In TLDG group, on the other hand, there were no significant differences in surgical outcomes between the groups., Conclusion: Based on these findings, early surgical outcomes of LADG were strongly influenced by the obesity. TLDG without minilaparotomy, however, was unaffected by the obesity. These findings strongly suggest that TLDG could be a safe procedure to avoid the impact of obesity.

Background: Subepithelial tumors (SETs) of the stomach are considered benign. However, they have the potential for malignant transformation, especially if they originate in the muscularis propria layer. This study aimed to determine the feasibility of endoscopic enucleation (EEN) for SETs in the muscularis propria layer and to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy and safety of EEN for SETs., Methods: A total of 65 lesions in 64 patients were eligible for inclusion in the study during the period between June 2006 and September 2009. En bloc enucleation using an insulated-tip knife and snare was attempted for removal of gastric SETs from the muscularis propria., Results: A total of 60 tumors were successfully resected by EEN (success rate, 92.3%). The mean tumor size, determined by endoscopic ultrasound, was 13.8 mm (range, 5-30 mm). A histologic diagnosis was obtained for 63 tumors (diagnostic yield, 96.9%), which was leiomyoma for 32 lesions, gastrointestinal stromal tumor for 26 tumors, and other for 5 tumors. The rate for complete resection in relation to the location of the lesion in the stomach was higher for the cardia, the mid/lower body (100%), and the high body (96%) than for the fundus (75%) or the antrum (50%, p=0.006). The rate of perforation was significantly higher for the fundus (50%) than for other locations (0% for the cardia and 4% for the high body) (p<0.001)., Conclusions: Endoscopic enucleation of gastric SETs originating in the muscularis propria layer was a safe and effective method for the histologic diagnosis and removal of small gastric SETs, especially those located in the cardia and the high body of the stomach.