-Original-

Orientation of Lower Esophageal Sphincter Pressure Using Three-Dimensional High-Resolution Manometry in Patients with Achalasia: A Pilot Study

Noriyuki Kawami, Shintaro Hoshino, Yoshimasa Hoshikawa, Eri Momma, Tomohide Tanabe, Mai Koeda and Katsuhiko Iwakiri

Department of Gastroenterology, Nippon Medical School, Graduate School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan

Background: This study was performed to evaluate the orientation of lower esophageal sphincter (LES) pressure in patients with untreated achalasia using three-dimensional high-resolution manometry (3D-HRM).
Methods: The study involved 20 patients with untreated achalasia (10 men, 60 [47-74] years of age). The 3D-HRM assembly had 32 standard channels and 12 3D channels. During basal LES pressure measurements, the orientations of the LES high- and low-pressure zones were evaluated at end-expiration. The directional relationships between the orientation of the LES high- and low-pressure zones were also evaluated.
Results: The LES high-pressure zones were located on the greater curvature side in nine (45%) patients, from the greater curvature to posterior wall side in six (30%), and from the greater curvature to anterior wall side in five (25%). The LES high-pressure zones were located mainly on the greater curvature side, but there were some variations of the orientation among the patients. The LES low-pressure zones were most frequently located from the lesser curvature to the posterior wall side in 11 (55%) patients, from the lesser curvature to anterior wall side in 6 (30%), on the posterior wall side in 2 (10%), and on the anterior wall side in 1 (5%). Significant differences were found in the directional relationships between the orientation of the LES high- and low-pressure zones (P = 0.0053).
Conclusions: This is the first report from Japan focusing on the LES pressure orientation using 3D-HRM. Such evaluation may be useful for clarifying the pathophysiology of achalasia.

J Nippon Med Sch 2023; 90: 165-172

Keywords
achalasia, lower esophageal sphincter (LES), three-dimensional high-resolution manometry (3D-HRM), esophagogastric junction (EGJ)

Correspondence to
Noriyuki Kawami, MD, PhD, Department of Gastroenterology, Nippon Medical School, Graduate School of Medicine, 1-1-5 Sendagi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8603, Japan
s5038@nms.ac.jp

Received, August 26, 2022
Accepted, November 10, 2022