The year of improved tissue acquisition, randomized trials, and endoscopic ultrasound-guided therapy

Presentations at this years Digestive Disease Week (DWW; 710 May, 2011; Chicago, Illinois, USA) reflected a very active year for endoscopic ultrasound (EUS). There were numerous abstracts on EUS-guided fine-needle aspiration (FNA) and core biopsy to improve tissue acquisition, improve diagnostic accuracy, and indeed go beyond routine cytology and tissue diagnosis. EUS-guided therapy including drainage, anastomoses, injection of therapeutic agents, and ablation were other common themes with a lot of new information presented, much of which was obtained from randomized trials. This review discusses in detail some of the abstracts that followed a common theme. Additional interesting abstracts on this topic are listed at the end of the review.