Usefulness of Water Jet Cleaning for Observation Area During Transnasal Upper Gastrointestinal Endoscopy : Mechanized Versus Manual Cleaning

Abstract

Objective: We evaluated transnasal upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy using mechanized water jet cleaning for observation area against manual cleaning, regarding procedure time and degree of nasal discomfort.
Subjects and Methods: Two hundred forty six patients were enrolled in the study. The outcomes included procedure time and patient nasal discomfort (grade: 0, no discomfort; 3, severe discomfort), as assessed by a questionnaire, for a manual cleaning group (62 patients) and a mechanized cleaning group (184 patients).
Results: The mean procedure time was 561±123 seconds in the manual cleaning group compared with 503±98 seconds in the mechanized cleaning group. The mean procedure time was significantly reduced in the mechanized cleaning group vs. the manual cleaning group (p = 0.0002). No (grade 0) and mild nasal discomfort (grade 1) were reported by 83.9% and 16.1% of the patients in the manual cleaning group and 86.4% and 13.6% in the mechanized cleaning group, respectively. No patients reported moderate to severe nasal discomfort. There was no significant difference in nasal discomfort between the groups (p = 0.624).
Conclusions: Although there was no difference in nasal discomfort between the groups, the use of mechanized water jet cleaning during transnasal upper GI endoscopy resulted in a significantly shorter procedure time during examinations compared with manual cleaning, and it is therefore considered to be useful.