Transanal electrovaporisation of rectal tumours

Objective: To present our early results with endoscopic transanal electrovaporization of rectal tumours. Design: Retrospective study. Setting: Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Selçuk. Subjects: 10 patients, 4 with malignant and 6 with benign lesions. Interventions: Vaporization of the tumour using a new ridged roller electrode, the VaporTrode, and a standard 24F urological resectoscope. Main outcome measures: Morbidity and recurrence. Results: There were no complications and all adenomas were vaporized completely. 2 patients with obstruction required a further treatment 3 and 5 months later because of recurrence. Median duration of operation was 22.5 minutes (range 10–38) and median duration of hospital stay was 3 days (range 1–4). Conclusion: The VaporTrode is a safe and potentially useful tool for transanal excision of rectal tumours, the long term efficacy of which should be tested in larger series of patients. Copyright © 1999 Taylor and Francis Ltd.