Meta-Analysis
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2021. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Jul 7, 2021; 27(25): 3925-3939
Published online Jul 7, 2021. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v27.i25.3925
Endoscopic submucosal dissection vs endoscopic mucosal resection for colorectal polyps: A meta-analysis and meta-regression with single arm analysis
Xiong Chang Lim, Kameswara Rishi Yeshayahu Nistala, Cheng Han Ng, Snow Yunni Lin, Darren Jun Hao Tan, Khek-Yu Ho, Choon-Seng Chong, Mark Muthiah
Xiong Chang Lim, Kameswara Rishi Yeshayahu Nistala, Cheng Han Ng, Snow Yunni Lin, Darren Jun Hao Tan, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597, Singapore
Khek-Yu Ho, Mark Muthiah, Department of Medicine, National University Hospital, Singapore 119074, Singapore
Choon-Seng Chong, Department of Surgery, National University Hospital, Singapore 119074, Singapore
Author contributions: Lim XC, Nistala KRY, Ng CH, Ho KY, Muthiah M and Chong CS were involved in the conceptualization of the paper; Lim XC and Nistala KRY were involved in the acquisition of data; Lim XC, Nistala KRY, Ng CH, Lin SY, Tan DJH, Ho KY, Muthiah M and Chong CS were involved in the data analysis and interpretation; Lim XC, Nistala KRY and Ng CH were involved in writing of first draft; Ho KY, Muthiah M, Chong CS were involved in the reviewing of the drafts; all eight authors approved the final manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors deny any conflict of interest.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Mark Muthiah, MBBS, MRCP, MMed, Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, National University Hospital, 5 Lower Kent Ridge Road, Singapore 119074, Singapore. mdcmdm@nus.edu.sg
Received: February 24, 2021
Peer-review started: February 24, 2021
First decision: April 18, 2021
Revised: April 21, 2021
Accepted: June 1, 2021
Article in press: June 1, 2021
Published online: July 7, 2021
Processing time: 131 Days and 19.3 Hours
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) has shown to be effective in management of colorectal neoplasm in the Asian countries, while its implementation in Western countries where endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) is preferred is still debatable.

Research motivation

Previous meta-analyses and systematic reviews comparing ESD with EMR included studies mainly conducted in Asia, with limited data coming from outside of Japan and did not control for confounders or lesions smaller than 20 mm.

Research objectives

To compare the outcomes of ESD and EMR in the treatment of colorectal polyps, with subgroup analysis comparing the efficacy of these two techniques between Japan and the rest of the world.

Research methods

Embase and Medline databases were searched in accordance with PRISMA guidelines for studies comparing en bloc, complete resection, margin involvement, resection time, need for additional surgery, complications, and recurrence rate of ESD with EMR in patients with colorectal lesions.

Research results

ESD was associated with better resection outcomes and lower recurrence rate when compared to EMR. Meta-regression analysis suggested only right colonic polyps correlated with an increased perforation risk in ESD, while confounders including polyp size and invasion depth did not significantly influence the resection outcomes, bleeding risk and recurrence. Subgroup analysis showed that Japan performed better than the rest of the world in both ESD and EMR with lower perforation risk.

Research conclusions

This meta-analysis suggests that with appropriate training, ESD is preferred over EMR as the first-line therapy for resection of colorectal polyps, without restricting to lesions greater than 20 mm and those with high suspicion of submucosal invasion. Increased proficiency in performing ESD and EMR was shown in Japan as compared with the rest of the world.

Research perspectives

This highlights the need to establish adequate training programs for colorectal ESD to be performed effectively. A randomized controlled trial is necessary to better understand the efficacy and safety of these techniques in the management of colorectal polyps.