Risk factors for local recurrence of large gastrointestinal lesions after endoscopic mucosal resection

Endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) is the primary treatment modality for superficial gastrointestinal mucosal lesions > 2 cm. However, the procedure carries some risk of complications including bleeding, perforation, and local recurrence. This study aimed to examine factors associated with EMR outcomes, especially in terms of local recurrence.

This study retrospectively evaluated patients who underwent EMR and full closure with prophylactic clips for upper and lower gastrointestinal lesions > 2 cm at Cleveland Clinic Florida, between January 2013 and December 2018 with follow-up endoscopic evaluation for recurrence.

A total of 2031 endoscopic polypectomy cases were examined; 307 EMR procedures among 271 patients (52% were female, mean age 65.6 ± 11.1 years) who satisfied the inclusion criteria were included in the study. There were no perforations reported. The rate of post-polypectomy delayed bleeding was 1.6%, and the local recurrence rate in this cohort was 7.1%. Recurrent cases were successfully endoscopically managed. In the multivariate regression analysis, age > 70 years (OR = 3.20, 95% CI 1.17-8.76, p = .023), body mass index (OR = 1.12, 95% CI 1.03-1.23 p = .008), and lesion size ≥ 35 mm (OR = 11.51, 95% CI 3.54-37.40, p =  < .001) were independent predictors for recurrence.

Age > 70 years, increased lesion size, and obesity were found to be independent predictors of local recurrence among EMR procedures for gastrointestinal lesions > 2 cm. However, there is a need for larger-scale studies on this topic.