Response

We thank Dr Lin for the helpful comments. EGD and capsule endoscopy (CE) identified the etiology in 62 of 83 patients (75%) in our cohort. Of the remaining patients, 2 of 21 (9.5%) had an underlying colorectal cancer, 1 of 21 patients (4.8%) were subsequently found to have gastric angiectasia, and 18 of 21 patients (85.7%) had no cause identified. However, EGD can be nondiagnostic in up to 25% of patients presenting with melena.

Source: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy - September 20, 2013 Category: Gastroenterology Authors: Sujievvan Chandran, Adam Testro Tags: Letters to the Editor Source Type: research