Abstract

FERREIRA B, Edgar Julián et al. Findings from anorectal endosonography in a prospective cohort. Rev Col Gastroenterol [online]. 2016, vol.31, n.1, pp.20-26. ISSN 0120-9957.

Anorectal endosonography can diagnose many diseases of the anal canal and rectum. In Colombia, the procedure is performed in only a few medical centers because of the scarcity of trained personnel. Four years ago, a group of teachers from the gastroenterological surgery clinical at the University of Caldas received training in endoluminal ultrasonography in Chile and Spain and have been practicing these procedures ever since. This is a descriptive study of a prospective cohort using data from patients who underwent endoluminal ultrasonography between October 2014 and September 2015. Data were obtained from 136 patients, of whom 72.05% were women. 20.6% of the patients came from departments other than Caldas. Fecal incontinence was the reason for the procedure for 44 patients (32.35%, 86% of whom were women). Other indications were rectal malignancies (23.5%), perianal fistulas (12.5%), anal pain (11.03%), endometriosis (7.35%), and perianal abscesses (6.62%). The most common final diagnoses were defective sphincters in 40 patients (29.41%), rectal malignancy in 13.24% of the patients, perianal fistulas in 11.76% of the patients,  perianal abscesses in 8.82% of the patients,  and benign rectal neoplasms in 6.62% of the patients . The results are consistent with those found in the international literature where the most common final diagnoses reported for the reason for fecal incontinence are sphincter defects and obstetric disorders. Anorectal endosonography is of great importance when used alone or to support other diagnostic tools. It is recommended that this procedure be done in a referral center such as ours which performs a large volume of these procedures and which follows international guidelines

Keywords : Endosonography; anal canal; rectum; fecal incontinence.

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