title: Endoscopic approaches for palliation of luminal gastrointestinal obstruction.
abstract: Much of the workload of a typical gastroenterologist is devoted to screening patients for gastrointestinal malignancies. Efforts such as colorectal cancer screening via colonoscopy and endoscopic surveillance of patients with Barrett's esophagus are widespread and widely endorsed. In recent years, the armamentarium of endoscopy has broadened considerably and now affords physicians a variety of nonsurgical means to palliate malignant obstruction of the gastrointestinal tract. This article reviews endoscopic techniques to treat malignant esophageal, biliary, small bowel, and colonic obstruction.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University of Texas-Houston Medical School, MSB 4.234, 6431 Fannin, 77030, USA. douglas.adler@uth.tmc.edu
authors.forename: Douglas G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Adler
authors.forename: Shehzad N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Merwat
mesh_terms: D016099:Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal; D004867:Equipment Design; D017219:Gastric Outlet Obstruction / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007415:Intestinal Obstruction / Q000628:therapy*; D010166:Palliative Care; D015607:Stents