title: Mid-gut stents.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Gastrointestinal stents offer a feasible, safe, cost effective, and minimally invasive method for reestablishing luminal patency. Previous clinical reports and systematic reviews have demonstrated the role of enteral stents in both the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract. Over the last two decades, the rapid development of deep enteroscopy in concert with the evolution of various stent devices/deployment mechanisms has enabled placement of enteral stents in the mid-gut; hence this has been increasingly reported. The present article focuses on stenting in the mid-gut, a relatively novel term, referring to the small bowel between the ampulla and the ileocecal valve.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mid-gut stenting is technically more difficult than stenting in the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract, and therefore requires particular expertise, restricting its widespread utility. In total, 86 reported cases involving mid-gut stent deployment, by either endoscopic approaches (80.2%) or percutaneous approaches (19.8%), have been published. Although limited, these results have demonstrated that mid-gut stenting is reliable, effective, and a minimally invasive method for palliating malignant obstruction, as well as sealing leaks and fistulae.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This article reviews the current status of mid-gut stenting, including endoscopic technique. The article also speculates about the potential for future advances within this field.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.
authors.forename: Faming
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Stuart K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Amateau
authors.forename: Mouen A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Khashab
authors.forename: Patrick I
authors.initials: PI
authors.lastname: Okolo
mesh_terms: D016099:Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007410:Intestinal Diseases / Q000628:therapy*; D007421:Intestine, Small; D019919:Prosthesis Implantation / Q000379:methods; D015607:Stents / Q000009:adverse effects