Optical coherence tomography (OCT) prior to peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) reduces procedural time and bleeding: a multicenter international collaborative study

Background Per-oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) has emerged as an endoscopic treatment of achalasia. There are no pre-procedural imaging modalities to predict the safest and the most efficacious approach. Aim To evaluate the use of optimal coherence tomography (OCT) in providing a pre-procedural esophageal assessment. Methods Patients undergoing POEM from July 2013 to November 2015 were captured in a multicenter, international registry. Patients who underwent OCT pre-POEM (“OCT arm”) were compared to patients without pre-POEM OCT (“control arm”). OCT images were assessed for the degree of vascularity and the thickness of the circular muscular layer, and an approach was determined. Results A total of 84 patients were captured in the registry. Fifty-one patients underwent pre-POEM OCT. Using OCT as a guide, 24 (47 %) of patients underwent anterior POEM while 27 (53 %) underwent posterior POEM. Technical success was achieved in 96 % of patients. Significantly less bleeding occurred in the OCT arm when compared to the control group [4 (8 %) vs. 14 (43 %), p = 0.0001]. As a result, procedural time was significantly lower in the OCT group as compared to the control group (85.8 vs. 121.7 min, p = 0.000097). Conclusion Pre-POEM OCT results in a reduction in procedural bleeding which contributes to a reduction in overall procedural time. Clinical trial registration NCT01438385.