Value of the use of balloon-assisted enteroscopy in diagnosis and treatment of small bowel tumor

Objective To study the value of the use of balloon-assisted enteroscopy (BAE) in the diagnosis and treatment of small bowel tumor. Methods From May 2007 to September 2014, a total of 126 patients with suspected small bowel tumor were enrolled. BAE was performed in all the patients. Of them, abdominal CT scan were performed in 80 patients, gastrointestinal barium radiography in 22, and capsule endoscopy in 24. The positive detection rate, sensitivity, specificity, and the rates of missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis of different examinations were compared. Balloon-assisted endoscopic treatment was conducted in some patients, and its safety and feasibility were assessed. Results The positive rate, sensitivity, and specificity of BAE for suspected small bowel tumor were significantly higher than that of abdominal CT scan, gastrointestinal barium radiography and CE (The positive rates of balloon-assisted enteroscopy, abdominal CT, gastrointestinal barium, capsule endoscopy were 92.9%, 47.5%, 68.2%, 91.7% respectively; their sensitivity 100%,71.1%, 66.7%, 100%, and specificity 100%, 82.9%, 28.6%, 22.2%), respectively (P<0.01), while the rates of diagnostic failure and misdiagnosis were remarkably lowered (The rates of diagnostic failure of balloon assisted enteroscopy, abdominal CT, gastrointestinal barium, capsule endoscopy were 0%, 28.9%, 33.3%, 0%, and the rates of misdiagnosis from these 0%, 17.1%, 71.4%, 77.8% respectively) (P