Clinical outcome of the use of enteral stents for palliation of patients with malignant upper GI obstruction

• Published in: Gastrointestinal endoscopy 2001-03, Vol.53 (3), p.329-332
• Main Authors: Yim, H.B., Jacobson, B.C., Saltzman, J.R., Johannes, R.S., Bounds, B.C., Lee, J.H., Shields, S.J., Ruymann, F.W., MD, J.Van Dam, Carr-Locke, D.L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biological and medical sciences; Cohort Studies; Diseases of the digestive system; Duodenal Diseases - diagnosis; Duodenal Diseases - mortality; Duodenal Diseases - therapy; Female; Gastric Outlet Obstruction - diagnosis; Gastric Outlet Obstruction - mortality; Gastric Outlet Obstruction - therapy; Humans; Intestinal Obstruction - diagnosis; Intestinal Obstruction - mortality; Intestinal Obstruction - therapy; Male; Medical sciences; Palliative Care - methods; Pancreatic Neoplasms - diagnosis; Pancreatic Neoplasms - mortality; Pancreatic Neoplasms - therapy; Probability; Prognosis; Radiotherapy. Instrumental treatment. Physiotherapy. Reeducation. Rehabilitation, orthophony, crenotherapy. Diet therapy and various other treatments (general aspects); Stents; Survival Analysis; Treatment Outcome; Tropical medicine
• ISSN: 0016-5107; 1097-6779
• DOI: 10.1016/S0016-5107(01)70407-5

Background: The endoscopically placed enteral stent has emerged as a reasonable alternative to palliative surgery for malignant intestinal obstruction. This is a report of our experience with the use of enteral stents for nonesophageal malignant upper GI obstruction. Methods: Data on all patients who had undergone enteral stent placement were reviewed. Those with a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer were compared with another similar cohort of patients who underwent palliative gastrojejunostomy. Results: Thirty-one procedures were performed on 29 patients (mean age 67.7 years). Thirteen (45%) were men and 16 (55%) women. The diagnoses were gastric (13.8%), duodenal (10.3%), pancreatic (41.4%), metastatic (27.6%), and other malignancies (6.9%). Malignant obstruction occurred at the pylorus (20.7%), first part of duodenum (37.9%), second part of duodenum (27.6%), third part of duodenum (3.5%), and anastomotic sites (10.3%). Twenty-nine (93.5%) procedures were successful and good clinical outcome was achieved in 25 (80.6%). Re-obstruction by tumor ingrowth occurred in 2 patients after a mean of 183 days. The median survival time for patients with pancreatic cancer who underwent enteral stent placement compared with those who underwent surgical gastrojejunostomy was 94 and 92 days, charges were $9921 and $28,173, and duration of hospitalization was 4 and 14 days, respectively (latter 2 differences with p value < 0.005). Conclusion: Endoscopic enteral stent placement of nonesophageal malignant upper GI obstruction is a safe, efficacious, and cost-effective procedure with good clinical outcome, lower charges, and shorter hospitalization period than the surgical alternative. (Gastrointest Endosc 2001;53:329-32.)