Safety and efficacy of endoscopic ultrasound‐guided gastroenterostomy for gastric outlet obstruction in different sites: A single‐center retrospective study

Objectives Endoscopic ultrasound‐guided gastroenterostomy (EUS‐GE) has recently been employed as a novel treatment for gastric outlet obstruction (GOO). The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of EUS‐GE for GOO at different sites. Methods Consecutive hospitalized patients who underwent EUS‐GE for GOO at the Department of Gastroenterology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital from March 2017 to April 2020 were recruited in this retrospective study. Patients were divided into three groups depending on the obstruction site. The primary outcomes included technical success and clinical success. The secondary outcomes were operation time, post‐procedure length of stay (LOS), hospitalization cost, and complications such as peritonitis, bleeding, pneumoperitoneum, abdominal pain, and infection. Results A total of 51 patients were included. Technical success achieved in 100% patients with proximal GOO and in 88.9% with distal GOO ( P = 0.176). Clinical success declined from the oral side to the anal side ( P = 0.510). Operation time, hospitalization costs, and post‐procedural LOS were similar among groups ( P = 0.532, 0.520, and 0.144, respectively). Complications were observed in 28 (54.9%) patients. In approaching the mature phase of the endosopist, clinical success improved, while the secondary outcomes showed no statistically significant difference compared with the initial phase. Conclusions EUS‐GE may be challenging for distal GOO; however, it is safe and effective when carried out by experienced endoscopists. A complete preoperative evaluation to assess the difficulty of the procedure is necessary. Prospective studies with large sample size are needed to further validate our findings.