Short-term outcomes of patients undergoing endoscopic submucosal dissection for colorectal lesions

Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) of colorectal lesions was invented in Japan, but postoperative management including hospital stay has not been reconsidered due to the Japanese insurance system. To explore appropriate postoperative management after colorectal ESD, we reviewed short-term outcomes after ESD in non-selected consecutive patients.

Patients who underwent colorectal ESD from April 2013 to September 2020 in one institution were reviewed. The primary outcome measure was the occurrence of adverse events stratified by the Clavien-Dindo classification with five grades. A logistic regression model with the Firth procedure was applied to investigate predictors of severe (grade III or greater) adverse events.

A total of 330 patients (female 40%, male 60%; median 72 years; IQR 65-80 years) with colorectal lesions (median 30 mm, IQR 23-40 mm; colon 77%, rectum 23%; serrated lesion 4%, adenoma 47%, mucosal cancer 30%, invasive cancer 18%) was evaluated. The en bloc resection rate was 97%. The median dissection time was 58 min (IQR: 38-86). Intraprocedural perforation occurred in 3%, all successfully treated by endoscopic clipping. No delayed perforations occurred. Postprocedural bleeding occurred in 3% on days 1-10 (median day 2); all were controlled endoscopically. Severe adverse events included only delayed bleeding. In analyzing severe adverse events in a multivariate logistic regression model with the Firth procedure, antithrombotic agent use (p = 0.016) and rectal lesions (p = 0.0010) were both significant predictors.

No serious adverse events occurred in this series. Four days of hospitalization may be too long for the majority of patients after ESD.