Published in:
01-04-2016 | Original Article
Endocytoscopic observation of various types of esophagitis
Published in: Esophagus | Issue 2/2016
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Background
Use of an endocytoscopy system (ECS) makes it possible to omit biopsy histology for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). However, for differential diagnosis of ESCC, the endocytoscopic characteristics of esophagitis should be clarified.
Methods
We examined the morphology of surface cells in 20 cases of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) (Grade M: 6 cases, A: 5 cases, B: 1 cases, C: 4 cases, D: 4 cases), five cases of candida esophagitis, and one case of eosinophilic esophagitis. One endoscopist classified the lesions using the modified type classification, and one pathologist judged the endocytoscopy images as “neoplastic”, “borderline”, or “non-neoplastic”.
Results
All cases of Grade M, A, and B GERD were classified as “type 1 or 2” by the endoscopist. However, 3/8 Grade C and D GERD lesions that had been diagnosed as regenerative squamous epithelium from biopsy histology were diagnosed as Type 3. All Grade M, A, and B cases were interpreted by the pathologist as “non-neoplastic”, whereas 4/8 Grade C and D GERD lesions, including three cases of regenerating epithelium, were diagnosed as “borderline” on the basis of ECS images. In 80 % of candida esophagitis cases, hyphae were visualized as white areas. Eosinophilic esophagitis showed a slight increase of cell density with marked infiltration of inflammatory cells.
Conclusion
Some cases of severe GERD cannot be clearly distinguished from esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) using ECS, and therefore at present, cases of ESCC coexisting with severe GERD should not be diagnosed by ECS alone and probably require biopsy. (UMIN000007627).