Endoscopic ultrasonography for the diagnosis and selecting treatment of esophageal leiomyoma.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: To investigate the clinical value of endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) with miniature ultrasonic probes (MUP) for the diagnosis and treatment of esophageal leiomyoma.

METHODS: A total of 229 patients with esophageal leiomyoma, diagnosed using EUS, with 12-MHz MUP and a double-cavity electronic endoscope, were enrolled. The clinical characteristics of the patients were analyzed, and those who had therapeutic indications received endoscopic resection or surgical excision. Postoperative histological diagnostic results were compared with the preoperative diagnosis of EUS. All patients, including those with or without endoscopic resection or surgical excision were periodically followed up with EUS.

RESULTS: Of the 229 patients, 118 received endoscopic resection, and seven received surgical excision. Postoperative histology showed that 110 patients were completely consistent with the preoperative diagnosis of EUS, and the diagnostic accuracy of EUS was 88.6%. No treatment-related complications occurred among the patients who received endoscopic resection or surgical excision, and no recurrence was observed during the follow-up examinations.

CONCLUSIONS: Esophageal leiomyoma is a benign tumor of the esophagus. EUS is a useful technique for the diagnosis of esophageal leiomyoma and for making treatment-related decisions.