Published online Jul 6, 2024. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v12.i19.3866
Revised: May 9, 2024
Accepted: May 20, 2024
Published online: July 6, 2024
Processing time: 164 Days and 2.6 Hours
The incidence of Barrett’s esophagus (BE) in China is lower compared to the Western populations. Hence, studies conducted in the Chinese population has been limited. The current treatment options available for BE treatment includes argon plasma coagulation (APC), radiofrequency ablation and cryoablation, all with varying degrees of success.
To determine the efficacy and safety of HybridAPC in the treatment of BE.
The study cohort consisted of patients with BE who underwent HybridAPC ablation treatment. These procedures were performed by seven endoscopists from different tertiary hospitals. The duration of the procedure, curative rate, complications and recurrent rate by 1-year follow-up were recorded.
Eighty individuals were enrolled for treatment from July 2017 to June 2020, comprising of 39 males and 41 females with a median age of 54 years (range, 30 to 83 years). The technical success rate of HybridAPC was 100% and the overall curative rate was 98.15%. No severe complications occurred during the operation. BE cases were classified as short-segment BE and long-segment BE. Patients with short-segment BE were all considered cured without complications. Thirty-six patients completed the one-year follow-up without recurrence. Twenty-four percent had mild dysplasia which were all resolved with one post-procedural treatment. The mean duration of the procedure was 10.94 ± 6.52 min.
Treatment of BE with HybridAPC was found to be a simple and quick procedure that is safe and effective during the short-term follow-up, especially in cases of short-segment BE. This technique could be considered as a feasible alternative ablation therapy for BE.
Core Tip: Among the ablation therapies, radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and Argon plasma coagulation (APC) have been the preferred method. However, there is no method that can 100% complete ablation success. Cryotherapy has become a rescue technique for patients with failed RFA. Meanwhile, the techniques used and resulting success rates have been variable. Hybrid APC technology combines injection and APC ablation technology, which may become an easier to use alternative method and may be used more widely. A prospective, multicenter study was undertaken to assess the feasibility and safety of ablation treatment, using HybridAPC, in the treatment of Barrett’s esophagus patients in China.