Computed tomography enteroclysis combined with double-balloon endoscopy is beneficial to the diagnosis of small bowel submucosal tumors

Aim: To compare the effectiveness and diagnostic accuracy of computed tomography enteroclysis (CTE), double-balloon endoscopy (DBE), and CTE with DBE (CTE/DBE) for detecting submucosal tumors (SMTs) in the small intestine.

Methods: The clinical data of 42 patients with pathologically confirmed small bowel SMTs seen at Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University between March 2012 and October 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. The value of CTE and DBE for detecting small bowel SMTs was then compared.

Results: No remarkable difference was found with regard to the sensitivity, positive and negative predictive values, as well as diagnostic accuracy rate between DBE and CTE, but the specificity of CTE was significantly higher than that of DBE (50.0% versus 25.0%, P = 0.001). Additionally, CTE/DBE also presented a higher sensitivity than CTE (97.4% versus 84.2%, P = 0.031). However, CTE/DBE and CTE were not greatly different in the positive predictive values and diagnostic accuracy rates.

Conclusion: These findings suggest that CTE was better at detecting small bowel SMTs than DBE. Additionally, the combination of CTE and DBE is more beneficial for detecting SMTs in the small intestine.