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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 292/1/G377    most recent 00311.2006v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (3) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by McMahon, B. P. Articles by Gregersen, H. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by McMahon, B. P. Articles by Gregersen, H.

NEUROREGULATION AND MOTILITY

The functional lumen imaging probe (FLIP) for evaluation of the esophagogastric junction

¹Centre for Visceral Biomechanics and Pain, Aalborg Hospital and ²Centre for Sensory Motor Interaction, Department of Health Science and Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark; and ³Department of Surgical Gastroenterology L, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark

Submitted 14 July 2006 ; accepted in final form 29 August 2006

There is a need for new methods to study the dynamics of the esophagogastric junction (EGJ). The aims were to verify the efficacy and usefulness of a "functional lumen imaging probe" (FLIP) for the evaluation of the EGJ. Eight healthy volunteers (6 men), median age 26 (21–35) yr, and two achalasia patients underwent the FLIP procedure. The EGJ was located by manometry. The FLIP measured eight cross-sectional areas (CSAs) 4 mm apart together with the pressure inside a saline-filled cylindrical bag. The data showed the geometric profile of the EGJ reconstructed in a video animation of its dynamic activity. A plot of curve-fitted data for the smallest CSA vs. pressure after balloon distension indicated that the pressure increased from 18 cmH₂O at a CSA of 38 mm² to a pressure of 37 cmH₂O at a CSA of 230 mm² for the healthy controls. In one achalasia patient (unsuccessfully treated with dilations), the CSA never rose above the minimal measurable value despite the pressure increasing to 50 cmH₂O. In another achalasia patient (successfully treated with dilations), the pressure only reached 15 cmH₂O despite opening to a CSA of 250 mm². In conclusion, FLIP represents the first dynamic technique to profile the function and anatomy of the EGJ. The method can be used practically to evaluate difficult cases of EGJ dysfunction and may provide a role in evaluating patients before and after therapies for diseases affecting the EGJ such as achalasia and gastroesophageal reflux disease.

esophagus; competence; distensibility; cross-sectional area; functional imaging

This article has been cited by other articles:

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