Background: Esophageal stricture frequently occur after extensive endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD). Effective, safe, and straightforward prevention and treatment methods are lacking. This preclinical animal study evaluated the efficacy of metformin in preventing esophageal stricture following ESD using a dog model. Methods: Ten Beagle dogs were randomly divided into the metformin and control groups. Circumferential esophageal ESD was performed 30-33 cm from the incisors. The metformin group received 100 mg/kg/day metformin from the second postoperative day, while the control group received physiological saline by gavage. After 4 weeks, the Beagles were euthanized, and esophageal tissues were collected for macroscopic and pathological evaluations. Results: = 0.008, Cliff's D = -1.00 (-1.00 to -0.82)]. Conclusion: Metformin effectively promoted esophageal wound re-epithelialization after ESD, reduced submucosal fibrosis, and showed a trend toward alleviating esophageal stricture.
Yang et al. (Tue,) studied this question.