http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. A new study suggests that surgery for appendicitis that uses a pinhole incision through the navel may be a feasible alternative to traditional appendectomies. Published early online in the British Journal of Surgery, the findings indicate that larger studies to test the potential of the procedure are warranted. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-appendix-scarless-surgery-navel.html Surgery Wed, 10 Apr 2013 19:00:02 EST news284832220 According to a new study by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, patients with Barrett's esophagus and early or pre-cancerous cells have been shown to significantly benefit from minimally invasive therapy delivered through an endoscope – a medical instrument used to look inside an organ or cavity in the body. Until recently, patients with these conditions were treated by surgery to remove the whole esophagus. Study results show that endoscope-based therapies have a high success rate; all of the damaged cells were removed in up to 95 percent of cases, greatly reducing the chances of cancer progression. Additionally, in over two-thirds of cases, patients had no biological signs of the return of disease for years. The study appears in the February issue of GIE: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-long-term-efficacy-minimally-invasive-therapy.html Cancer Wed, 20 Feb 2013 14:09:44 EST news280591775 A new endoscopic surgical procedure has been shown to be safer and to result in better outcomes than the current standard medical treatment for patients who suffer strokes as a result of brain hemorrhages, UCLA neurosurgeons have announced. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-brain-hemorrhage-patients.html Surgery Tue, 12 Feb 2013 07:32:31 EST news279876703 A new study shows that endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) before radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a safe and effective treatment option for patients with nodular Barrett's esophagus (BE) and advanced neoplasia. The performance of EMR before RFA was not associated with a diminished likelihood of success of therapy or an increased rate of stricture compared with those with advanced neoplasia undergoing RFA alone. The study appears in the October issue of GIE: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-endoscopic-mucosal-resection-radiofrequency-ablation.html Cancer Tue, 16 Oct 2012 13:50:34 EST news269614222 To prevent the risks in minimally invasive surgery procedures there has been considerable interest in using Master Slave System (MSS), a telesurgical system for catheter guide during interventional radiology. Here the researchers propose using a fail-safe telesurgical system. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-mechatronic-fail-safe-catheter-blood-circulatory.html Surgery Thu, 11 Oct 2012 07:02:42 EST news269157749 University Hospitals (UH) Case Medical Center is one of five institutions nationwide performing a novel scarless procedure that restores swallowing function in some patients with achalasia, a rare condition where the esophagus is unable to move food into the stomach. Per-oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) is a state-of-the-art technique to treat patients without any external incisions or outside scars. With POEM, surgeons enter through the mouth and tunnel an endoscope down the esophagus to cut the muscle fibers to open the esophagus, allowing food to enter the stomach. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-uh-case-medical-center-scarless.html Surgery Mon, 24 Sep 2012 15:47:18 EST news267720430 (HealthDay)—Patients who undergo endoscopic forehead-lift procedures report high satisfaction and lasting results, according to research published in the September/October issue of the Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-positive-long-term-results-endoscopic-forehead-lift.html Surgery Wed, 19 Sep 2012 18:09:28 EST news267296956 University of Utah engineers mapped white blood cells called eonsinophils and showed an existing diagnostic method may overlook an elusive digestive disorder that causes swelling in the esophagus and painful swallowing. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-biopsies-overlook-esophagus-diseasestudy-reveals.html Immunology Thu, 06 Sep 2012 16:39:21 EST news266168352 (Phys.org)—A small camera inserted into the body enables surgeons to perform many types of operations with minimal trauma. EU-funding enabled researchers to extend the use of such interventions to a variety of neurosurgical applications. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-high-tech-remote-controlled-camera-neurosurgery.html Other Fri, 24 Aug 2012 09:30:02 EST news265018550 By simply shining a tiny light within the small intestine, close to that organ's junction with the pancreas, physicians at Mayo Clinic's campus in Florida have been able to detect pancreatic cancer 100 percent of the time in a small study. The light, attached to a probe, measures changes in cells and blood vessels in the small intestine produced by a growing cancer in the adjoining pancreas. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-pancreatic-cancer-simple-intestinal-probe.html Cancer Mon, 21 May 2012 18:18:17 EST news256843086 A new study led by Brown University researchers reports that percutaneous endoscopic gastric (PEG) feeding tubes, long assumed to help bedridden dementia patients stave off or overcome pressure ulcers, may instead make the horrible sores more likely to develop or not improve. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-gastric-tubes-pressure-ulcer.html Other Mon, 14 May 2012 11:00:01 EST news256208647 Researchers report that unsedated transnasal endoscopy is a feasible, safe, and well-tolerated method to screen for esophageal disease in a primary care population. This study is the largest reported experience with transnasal endoscopy in the United States. The study appears in the May issue of GIE: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-screening-esophageal-disease-unsedated-transnasal.html Cancer Thu, 10 May 2012 13:03:29 EST news255873797 In a small, preliminary trial, patients with infected necrotizing pancreatitis (severe form of the disease involving devitalized pancreatic tissue) who received a less-invasive procedure, endoscopic transgastric necrosectomy (removal of the pancreatic tissue), had an associated lower risk of major complications and death compared to patients who had surgical necrosectomy, according to a study in the March 14 issue of JAMA. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-endoscopic-procedure-result-outcomes-patients.html Inflammatory disorders Tue, 13 Mar 2012 16:00:07 EST news250869095 Repeated screening by flexible sigmoidoscopy (FSG) increased the detection of colorectal cancer or advanced adenoma in women by one-fourth and in men by one-third, according to a study published Jan. 31 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-flexible-sigmoidoscopy-shown-colorectal-cancer.html Cancer Tue, 31 Jan 2012 16:00:01 EST news247238049 For more than 100 years, the traditional treatment for the painful growths called gallstones has been removal of the gallbladder, or cholecystectomy. But a new device, patented in China, promises to make removing the entire organ unnecessary. A group of scientists from the Second People's Hospital of Panyu District and Central South University in China have developed an endoscope specially designed for locating and clearing out gallstones and other gallbladder lesions. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-easier-gallstones.html Other Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:25:29 EST news246039920 Researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) have successfully tested a controllable endoscopic capsule, inspired by science fiction, that has the ability to "swim" through the body and could provide clinicians with unprecedented control when photographing the inside of the human body. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-swallow-pill-doc-insides.html Medical research Tue, 10 Jan 2012 10:50:01 EST news245414616 Patients with recent use of aspirin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), or anti-clotting drugs such as clopidogreal (Plavix) do not appear to have an increased risk of bleeding during or after removal of precancerous lesions in the digestive tract, according to results of a Mayo Clinic study. The findings, culled from a review of 1,382 procedures of patients treated at Mayo Clinic in Florida, are being presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in Washington, D.C. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-11-anti-clotting-drugs-gi-procedure.html Cardiology Tue, 01 Nov 2011 13:39:20 EST news239373550 (Medical Xpress) -- From precancerous lesions in the bladder to polyps in the colon, pathologists are constantly examining tissue biopsies for diagnoses. Researchers at Cornell are pushing the limits of the well-established imaging technology called multiphoton microscopy by shrinking the microscopes so they can be inserted safely into a patient's body -- and minimizing the need for unnecessary biopsies. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-multiphoton-endoscope-minimize-biopsies.html Medical research Tue, 18 Oct 2011 07:59:23 EST news238143549 A large-scale data review by researchers in China of double balloon enteroscopy (DBE) over the last decade showed the endoscopic procedure to be safe and effective for detection of diseases of the small intestine. DBE had a pooled detection rate of 68.1 percent for all small intestinal disease. Suspected mid-gastrointestinal bleeding was found to be the most common indication, with a relatively high detection rate. Inflammatory lesions and vascular lesions were the most common findings in patients with suspected mid-gastrointestinal bleeding. The study appears in the September issue of GIE: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-large-scale-balloon-enteroscopy-safe-effective.html Other Mon, 26 Sep 2011 15:41:44 EST news236270492 Jorge Sobenes is a husband and father who loves to cook for his family. In a nine month period however, he went from enjoying his favorite foods to not being able to eat or drink due to a tightening in his throat and difficulty swallowing. He lost 40 pounds and was desperate for answers. Sobenes was diagnosed with achalasia, a condition where the esophagus is unable to move food into the stomach, and was told he would need surgery. Historically, the procedure requires several incisions in the abdomen in order to access the blocked esophageal pathway. Sobenes however was able to undergo surgery without any external incisions thanks to an innovative new research approach called PerOral Endoscopic Myotomy (POEM). The procedure is one of a growing number of surgeries to use the body's natural orifices as an entry point, thus eliminating the need for traditional incisions. Northwestern Memorial Hospital is one of only a few centers in the U.S. with surgeons trained to perform the procedure. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-incisionless-surgery-treatment-esophageal-disorder.html Other Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:04:40 EST news233233458 The American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) have updated their 2003 joint guideline for reprocessing gastrointestinal endoscopes to reaffirm reprocessing methods and take into account evolved technology and disinfection systems. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-asge-shea-issue-multisociety-guideline.html Other Wed, 01 Jun 2011 13:09:25 EST news226152535 Colonoscopy is regarded as the most thorough way to screen for colon cancer but the potentially life-saving procedure can also be painful. Scientists and engineers are continually researching new methods of screening to reduce patient discomfort while also ensuring the accuracy of the exam. Researchers at Tufts University's School of Engineering led by Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering Caroline G.L. Cao, Ph.D., have developed a device that could potentially do both. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-04-painful-colonoscopy-problem-looping.html Other Wed, 27 Apr 2011 10:36:56 EST news223119398