The Diagnostic Yields and Safety of Double-Balloon Enteroscopy in Obscure Gastrointestinal Bleeding and Incomplete Small Bowel Obstruction: Comparison between the Adults and Elderly

BACKGROUND: Double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE) is widely used worldwide. However, comparisons between the diagnostic yields in adults and the elderly remain scarce. AIM: The aim of this study is to compare the diagnostic yields and safety of DBE between adults and elderly with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding and incomplete small bowel obstruction. METHOD: We retrospectively reviewed patients who underwent DBE with indication of obscure gastrointestinal bleeding or incomplete small bowel obstruction in Ruijin Hospital and classified them into adults (18–64 years old) and elderly (≥65 years old). Clinical characteristics, diagnostic yields, and postoperative complications were collected and further analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 877 DBE procedures, 729 in adults and 148 in the elderly, were performed. In the patients with OGIB, the adults showed a higher frequency of Meckel's diverticulum compared with the elderly (4.6% vs. 0.9%, P = 0.032). Angioectasia was higher in frequency in the elderly than in the adults (25.9% vs. 17.9%, P = 0.048). In patients with incomplete small bowel obstruction, the elderly were more likely to have adenocarcinoma than the adults (19.4% vs. 7.1%, P = 0.038). The adults had higher tendency to have Crohn's disease than the elderly (23.4% vs. 8.3%, P = 0.045). Most of the postoperative complications were mild. The adults and elderly displayed comparable tolerance to DBE (P > 0.05) CONCLUSION: DBE has a high diagnostic yield in small bowel disorders, and a slight difference in disease spectrum was observed between the adults and elderly. DBE can be well-tolerated in the elderly.