Abstract
Background Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) has been widely used to treat superficial esophageal
neoplasms (SENs). Intraoperative bleeding is one of the main concerns that makes ESD
in the esophagus more difficult and time consuming with higher complication rates.
We introduced a novel laser endoknife system that enabled better intraoperative hemostasis,
and preliminarily investigated its feasibility in ESD for patients with SENs.
Methods 17 consecutive patients with SENs were prospectively enrolled. The laser endoknife
system was used in marking and submucosal dissection. Data on therapeutic outcomes
were collected and analyzed.
Results The median diameter of the lesions was 2.5 cm and of the resected specimens was 3.0 cm.
The median procedure time was 48 minutes. Histologic evaluation revealed 15 high grade
intraepithelial neoplasias and two squamous cell carcinomas. No intraoperative bleeding
occurred during laser cutting and no significant complications occurred postoperatively.
Curative R0 resection was achieved in all patients.
Conclusions Our new laser endoknife system was feasible in the submucosal dissection of SENs
and showed great prospects for future application.
