Kim TH, et al. J Gastric Cancer. 2023 Jan;23:e11. https://doi.org/10.5230/jgc.2023.23.e11

Kim IH, et al. J Gastric Cancer. 2025 Jan;25:e11. https://doi.org/10.5230/jgc.2025.25.e11

Kim SY, et al. J Korean Med Sci. 2019 May;34(21):e158. https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2019.34.e158

With an aging population, the number of patients with difficulty in swallowing due to medical conditions is gradually increasing. In such cases, enteral nutrition is administered through a temporary nasogastric tube. However, the long-term use of a nasogastric tube leads to various complications and a decreased quality of life. Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) is the percutaneous placement of a tube into the stomach that is aided endoscopically and may be an alternative to a nasogastric tube when enteral nutritional is required for four weeks or more. This paper is the first Korean clinical guideline for PEG developed jointly by the Korean College of Helicobacter and Upper Gastrointestinal Research and led by the Korean Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. These guidelines aimed to provide physicians, including endoscopists, with the indications, use of prophylactic antibiotics, timing of enteric nutrition, tube placement methods, complications, replacement, and tube removal for PEG based on the currently available clinical evidence.

Recently in Korea, where triple therapy is accepted as the first-line Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) eradication treatment, antibiotic resistance to clarithromycin has increased considerably, resulting in eradication rates of less than 80%. We investigated the efficacy of tailored therapy after a clarithromycin resistance test compared with empirical therapy for H. pylori eradication. The cost-effectiveness of H. pylori eradication success was evaluated according to the average medical cost per patient. A total of 364 patients were enrolled in the study. The first-line H. pylori eradication rate was significantly higher in patients who received tailored therapy than in those who received empirical therapy. The total medical costs for the tailored and empirical groups were 46,374 Won and 53,528 Won. The total treatment period for each ultimately successful eradication in the tailored group was 79.8 ± 2.8 days, which is shorter than that of the empirical group (99.2 ± 7.4 days). The rate of eradication-related adverse events for the tailored group and empirical group was 12.9% and 14.8%, respectively. Tailored therapy could be a useful option to achieve a higher successful eradication rate, shorter treatment periods, and lower medical costs than empirical therapy in the era of increasing antibiotic resistance.

Chung Hyun Tae, Ju Yup Lee, Moon Kyung Joo, Chan Hyuk Park, Eun Jeong Gong, Cheol Min Shin, Hyun Lim, Hyuk Soon Choi, Miyoung Choi, Sang Hoon Kim, Chul-Hyun Lim, Jeong-Sik Byeon, Ki-Nam Shim, Geun Am Song, Moon Sung Lee, Jong-Jae Park, Oh Young Lee, The Korean Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Task Force on Clinical Practice Guidelines. Gut and Liver 2024;18:10-26. https://doi.org/10.5009/gnl230146