The practice of interventional gastrointestinal endoscopy at a tertiary referral hospital

Abstract

Background: Interventional endoscopy enables one time diagnosis and treatment of gastrointestinal diseases with minimally invasive therapy and improved disease outcome. Local use has remained low with minimal reporting. Knowledge of current practice at a tertiary level may promote utilization of interventional gastrointestinal endoscopy. Objective: To describe the practice of interventional gastro intestinal endoscopy at Kenyatta National Hospital. Methods: In a prospective descriptive study consecutive sampling was used. Main variables were interventional procedure offered, sedation mode and immediate outcome of the procedure. Results: There were 211 cases and interventional endoscopy accounted for 21.7% of these.The male: female ratio was 1:0.9. The median age group was 41-50 years. Variceal band ligation, ERCP and esophageal stenting were the three most common procedures. No mortalities were recorded during the period of study. Conclusion: Our report describes application of interventional endoscopy in a variety of gastrointestinal diseases with acceptable immediate outcome.