Published online Dec 16, 2020. doi: 10.4253/wjge.v12.i12.532
Peer-review started: August 10, 2020
First decision: September 17, 2020
Revised: October 10, 2020
Accepted: November 29, 2020
Article in press: November 29, 2020
Published online: December 16, 2020
Processing time: 125 Days and 4.6 Hours
Per-oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) is a safe and effective treatment for achalasia, but in patients with prior bariatric surgery the altered gastrointestinal tract anatomy can pose a technical challenge.
Currently there is sparse published data on efficacy and feasibility of POEM in patients with prior Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) and no published reports in patients with prior sleeve gastrectomy (SG).
To describe the safety, feasibility and clinical outcomes of POEM in patients with history of bariatric surgery.
Six patients with prior bariatric surgery who underwent POEM for achalasia were included. Technical success defined as the ability to successfully complete the procedure and clinical success defined as a post procedure Eckardt score ≤ 3 were evaluated. Adverse events were recorded for safety outcomes.
Six patients (50% male, mean age 48 years) with a history of prior bariatric surgery (3 RYGB, 3 SG) underwent POEM. Four patients had Achalasia Type II and two had Achalasia Type 1. Technical success was 100%. Clinical success was achieved in 4 (67%) patients at mean follow-up of 21 mo. One clinical failure was likely a result of candida esophagitis causing dysphagia since EndoFLIP demonstrated adequate myotomy. There were no major adverse events.
POEM is technically feasible after both RYGB and SG and offers an effective treatment for this rare group of patients where surgical options for achalasia are limited.
Future prospective studies are needed to compare outcomes in patients undergoing POEM after RYGB vs SG and to define predictors for clinical success.