Background: We established feasibility and safety for natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) GI anastomosis with a lumen-apposing stent in live pigs. This approach was performed in 3 patients.
Objective: Creation of a NOTES gastroduodenal anastomosis in patients.
Design: Case series.
Setting: Two tertiary-care referral centers at large academic hospitals in France and in the United States.
Patients: Patients with refractory benign duodenal stenosis and malignant duodenal obstruction.
Intervention: NOTES GI anastomosis with a lumen-apposing stent.
Main outcome measurements: Disappearence of gastric outlet obstruction.
Results: All 3 procedures were technically successful and uneventful, except 1 minor adverse event. There were no instances of stent occlusion or migration during follow-up. All patients resumed a normal diet.
Limitations: Small case series.
Conclusion: NOTES gastroenteric anastomosis is feasible and safe in humans. A prospective pilot study is warranted.
Copyright © 2015 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.