“THE HUNT FOR THE RED SPOT”Investigations and management of the obscure GI bleeder
Dr Georgina CameronEndoscopy Fellow, SVHMANZSPM Update Meeting
28th June 2013
Background
Obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) represents occult or overt bleeding of unknown origin after normal gastroscopy and colonoscopy.
– Overt bleeding is characterised by haematemesis and/or melaena.
– Occult is not detectable by the patient
Background
• 5% of all GI bleeding occurs in the small bowel outside the intubation range of gastroscopy and colonoscopy.
• ~75% obscure GI bleeding arises from the small bowel (25% found on repeat upper and lower endoscopy)
Causes of obscure GI bleeding
Ulcer
GIST
Angioectasia
Diverticular disease
Varices
Endoscopic investigations for obscure GI bleeding
Repeat Gastroscopy, colonoscopy - 25% will detect aetiology of obscure GI bleeding
Push enteroscopy- Aiming to visualise proximal jejunum- Typically use a paediatric colonoscope and able to intubate 100cm into
small bowel
Capsule endoscopy- Benefit of complete small bowel visualisation- Fair localisation- Guides next best investigation- Not therapeutic
Endoscopic investigations for obscure GI bleeding
Double Balloon Enteroscopy
- Anterograde and retrograde allowing visualisation 75% small bowel - Allows therapeutic intervention such as polypectomy, cauterization, clipping - Ink tattooing allows localisation of pathology for surgeons
Intraoperative enteroscopy
Radiological investigations
CT Angiography (>0.3 mL/min)Good localisation, precursor to angiography
Labelled Red Cell Scan (>0.1mL/min)Poor localisation
Digital Subtraction Angiography (therapeutic)
Case 1 Mrs SM
• 70 year old lady from Warrnambool– Recurrent presentations with abdominal pain,
fever and melaena– Haemoglobin 60g/L requiring 3 units blood and
admission to intensive care– On aspirin for atrial fibrillation– Normal gastroscopy and colonoscopy
Case 1: Mrs SMCapsule endoscopy showed
bleeding from proximal small bowel CT showed
small bowel diverticula
Case 1: Mrs SM
• Transferred to St Vincent’s Hospital• Small amount of melaena with Haemoglobin
drop post arrival – transfused 3 units • CT angiogram – no focus of bleeding• Given capsule endoscopy findings, proceeded
to anterograde double balloon enteroscopy
Anterograde Double Balloon Enteroscopy
Fresh bleeding and clot within a small bowel diverticulum
Unable to achieve haemostasis
Site tattooed for surgical localisation
Case SM – “X” marks the spot
Laparotomy and 15cm small bowel resection with end to end anastamosis.
Case 2: Mrs EH• 73 year old• Several weeks of melaena• Hypotensive, dizzy and unable to mobilise • Hb 51g/L on admission and iron deficient• Past history of peptic ulcer disease,
rheumatoid arthritis, 2nd degree heart block• No non-steroidals anticoagulants/antiplatelets
on admission
Case 2: Mrs EH• Gastroscopy x2 – Chronic non-bleeding gastric ulcers
• Colonoscopy – Blood in colon and ileum
• CT angiogram – NAD
• Push enteroscopy to 90cm– NAD
• Red cell scan – bleeding in the proximal small bowel
Case EHCapsule endoscopy
Blood 2/3 into small bowel transit time
Capsule noted to be in the right iliac fossa on the 8-lead map
Case 2 Mrs EHAnterograde DBE – unremarkable
Retrograde DBE –ooze over a pulsating area of mucosa 100cm proximal to ileocaecal valve
This represented angioectasia, and was treated with Adrenaline, Argon Plasma Coagulation (APC), and clipping
Outcome
18 units PRBC in a 19 day admission
Haemostasis achieved at retrograde DBE
Patient discharged home 2 days later with no further bleeding
Prolonged overt obscure gastrointestinal bleeding – A “real
world” experience
Prayman T Sattianayagam, Paul V Desmond, Andrew CF TaylorSubmitted to Digestive Diseases and Sciences 2013
Aims
• To assess – the final diagnosis and outcomes in patients with
overt obscure GI bleeding– clinical features of the patients that may point to
the diagnosis– diagnostic yield of the battery of investigations
used for this group of patients
Methods:
Over a ten-year period between 2002 and 2012 twenty-eight patients who fulfilled the following inclusion criteria were included in the study:
1) overt GI haemorrhage2) anaemia requiring transfusion 3) an initial negative gastroscopy and colonoscopy 4) at least one inpatient hospital stay of ≥7 days
because of persistent GI bleeding
Recorded Measurements
The clinical presentation, transfusion requirements and investigations of each patient were recorded - until diagnosis and treatment, or - until death or census in September 2012 (in those who had undiagnosed OGIB)
Results:• 28 patients (14 male)
• Median age at presentation = 68 years (18-88)
• Median follow-up in the entire cohort was 3 years (0.1-9.4)
• Drugs potentiating GI bleeding (present in 76% of those >60yo)– 10 on aspirin– 3 on clopidogrel – 4 on warfarin
• Median time from presentation to treatment 5.3 months (0.3 - 48)
• Median number of units of blood transfused per patient 29 (10 - 86) units
Causative PathologiesDiagnoses No. Ages of patients (yrs)
Small intestinal angioectasia 6 66,67,67,67,68,84
Large intestinal angioectasia 2 78,86
Small intestinal varices 4 18,39,50, 58
Small intestinal gastrointestinal stromal tumour 2 70,79
Small intestinal carcinoid 3 33,76,78
Jejunal diverticula 2 69,80
Colonic diverticula 1 73
Pancreaticoduodenal artery aneurysm 1 88
Small intestinal anastomotic bleeding 2 33,48
Infected aortoenteric fistula 1 74
No diagnoses 4 31,32,61,74
Yield of endoscopic investigations in overt OGIB
Test No. of patients No. of tests Positive diagnostic yield
Positive therapeutic yield
Repeat Gastroscopy 19 36 3% 3%
Repeat colonoscopy 14 28 4% 4%
Capsule endoscopy 20 32 53% 0%
Push enteroscopy 11 12 17% 17%
Antegrade double balloon enteroscopy
13 16 31% 13%
Retrograde double balloon enteroscopy
6 7 0% 0%
Yield of radiological investigations in overt OGIB
Test No. of patients
No. of tests
Positive diagnostic yield
Positive therapeutic yield
Radionuclide red cell scan
23 41 51% 0%
CT angiography 17 27 30% 0%
Angiography 13 21 33% 29%
Surgical outcomes in overt OGIBTest No. of patients No. of tests Positive
diagnostic yieldPositive therapeutic yield
Surgery overall 13 15 60%
- Clear lesion identified prior to surgery
7 7 86%
- Non-specific finding prior to surgery
6 8 2 (25%) 25%
Enteroscopy performed in addition to surgery
5 5 2 (40%)
Summary• Repeat gastroscopy/colonoscopy allowed treatment of angioectasias in
two elderly patients
• Radionuclide red cell scans had the highest radiological diagnostic yield but were beneficial only in conjunction with other tests such as CT angiography, which was a useful precursor test to angiographic embolisation
• Capsule endoscopy had the highest endoscopic diagnostic yield
• Anterograde double balloon enteroscopy had the best endoscopic diagnostic and therapeutic yield
• Surgery had a diagnostic and therapeutic yield of 60%, which was better if a definite lesion had been identified previously
Conclusions:• Overt OGIB is difficult to manage
• Angioectasias are the commonest cause of overt OGIB in patients over 65 who are often on antiplatelet/anticoagulant therapy
• Capsule endoscopy is best first-line test, which can guide enteroscopy
• Nuclear medicine labelled red cell scan helpful but poor localisation
• CT angiography can guide angiographic embolisation but this requires more rapid rate of bleeding
• Surgery is often curative if you can localise the site of bleeding prior
• “Management should be individualised with consideration for repeating investigations”