The importance of upper gastrointestinal lesions detected with capsule endoscopy in patients with obscure digestive bleeding

Study aims : Small bowel capsule endoscopy (SBCE) is the first line procedure for detecting small bowel lesions in patients with an obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB). Missed upper gastro- intestinal (UGI) lesions at the initial endoscopy may account for the so-called OGIB. This retrospective study was designed to assess the role of SBCE in detecting missed UGI lesions. Methods : All consecutive SBCE that were performed in the last year for patients with OGIB were included in our study. We evalu- ated the visibility of the gastric mucosa, the anatomic landmarks, the presence of UGI lesions as well as their clinical importance. The SBCE findings were compared with the reports of previous UGI endoscopies. Results : 118 patients (45 males, 73 females, mean age 61 ± 19 years) were included in the analysis. The indication for SBCE was obscure overt and occult OGIB in 60 and in 58 patients, respectively. SBCE identified lesions in the small bowel in 42% of the patients. An excellent visibility of gastric mucosa was observed in 83/118 cases (70.3%). SBCE identified gastric lesions with poten- tial clinical significance (high bleed potential) in 25/118 (21.2%) patients. In 12/118 (10.2%) patients the UGI lesions detected by SBCE were considered as the only potential source of bleeding. Conclusions : In patients with OGIB, SBCE detected not only small bowel lesions but also significant UGI lesions that were missed or underestimated at the initial endoscopy in 21% of cases. It is therefore necessary to carefully read the gastric images when performing an SBCE. (Acta gastroenterol. belg., 2011, 74, 395-399)