title: Endoscopic ultrasound-guided treatments: are we getting evidence based--a systematic review.
abstract: The continued need to develop less invasive alternatives to surgical and radiologic interventions has driven the development of endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)-guided treatments. These include EUS-guided drainage of pancreatic fluid collections, EUS-guided necrosectomy, EUS-guided cholangiography and biliary drainage, EUS-guided pancreatography and pancreatic duct drainage, EUS-guided gallbladder drainage, EUS-guided drainage of abdominal and pelvic fluid collections, EUS-guided celiac plexus block and celiac plexus neurolysis, EUS-guided pancreatic cyst ablation, EUS-guided vascular interventions, EUS-guided delivery of antitumoral agents and EUS-guided fiducial placement and brachytherapy. However these procedures are technically challenging and require expertise in both EUS and interventional endoscopy, such as endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and gastrointestinal stenting. We undertook a systematic review to record the entire body of literature accumulated over the past 2 decades on EUS-guided interventions with the objective of performing a critical appraisal of published articles, based on the classification of studies according to levels of evidence, in order to assess the scientific progress made in this field.
authors.affiliation: Carlo Fabbri, Vincenzo Cennamo, Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, AUSL Bologna Bellaria-Maggiore Hospital, 40139 Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fabbri
authors.affiliation: Carlo Fabbri, Vincenzo Cennamo, Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, AUSL Bologna Bellaria-Maggiore Hospital, 40139 Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Carmelo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Luigiano
authors.affiliation: Carlo Fabbri, Vincenzo Cennamo, Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, AUSL Bologna Bellaria-Maggiore Hospital, 40139 Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lisotti
authors.affiliation: Carlo Fabbri, Vincenzo Cennamo, Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, AUSL Bologna Bellaria-Maggiore Hospital, 40139 Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Cennamo
authors.affiliation: Carlo Fabbri, Vincenzo Cennamo, Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, AUSL Bologna Bellaria-Maggiore Hospital, 40139 Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Clara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Virgilio
authors.affiliation: Carlo Fabbri, Vincenzo Cennamo, Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, AUSL Bologna Bellaria-Maggiore Hospital, 40139 Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Giancarlo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Caletti
authors.affiliation: Carlo Fabbri, Vincenzo Cennamo, Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, AUSL Bologna Bellaria-Maggiore Hospital, 40139 Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Fusaroli
mesh_terms: D017115:Catheter Ablation; D002758:Cholangiography; D004066:Digestive System Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000628:therapy*; D013505:Digestive System Surgical Procedures; D004322:Drainage; D016145:Endoscopy, Digestive System; D019160:Endosonography; D057510:Endovascular Procedures; D000431:Ethanol / Q000008:administration & dosage; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D007267:Injections; D009407:Nerve Block; D018579:Patient Selection; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D018084:Ultrasonography, Interventional
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol
keywords: Celiac plexus neurolysis; Endoscopic ultrasound; Fine needle injection; Levels of evidence; Necrosectomy; Pseudocyst drainage