Abdominal Imaging and Endoscopy

Biography

Biography: Antonio Iannetti

Abstract

Gastro-esophageal reflux disease is a very common disease among the “healthy” population. Its natural history involves continuous recursions alternating with quiescent stages. For this reason, the importance of the social problem and high health costs is clear.

Some patients do not respond to medical therapy. Those who benefit from medical treatment often become addicted to medication. As many are young and as medical therapy can have adverse side effects such as anemia, osteoporosis, and infections, the need for alternative therapies arises.

Surgery is seen with fear in view of the possible early or late complications and the technical difficulties of repeating the intervention in case of failure. Laparoscopic surgery has favored a greater propensity for the surgical solution, but it is still an intervention involving 3-4 days of hospitalization.

Endoscopic surgery, easy, repeatable surgery, without intraoperative and postoperative complications, which can be performed at Day Hospital, would be ideal for this type of chronic illness.

In reviewing the various techniques that have been proposed over the last twenty years, I refer to the considerations derived from international literature.

I carry out scientific studies that compared endoscopic operations (especially endoscopic fundoplication) with surgical fundoplication, with satisfactory results -but not always- in favor of the first one.

My personal invitation is to continue to look for solutions with endoscopic surgery, which should be or become the most appropriate technique for this type of pathology, considering the easy repeatability, if anything but a bridge to surgery.