Introduction
Gallbladder dysfunction is a severe ailment that affects many people. To avoid serious, life-threatening complications, registered nurses need to keep in touch with new developments in gallbladder dysfunction treatment. One such development is the use of a self-expanding metal stent guided by endoscopic ultrasound. To treat using new technology, the nurse must study and consider all aspects of the disease and the technology. These include patient safety, possible risks, and methods of communication with other medical professionals.
Procedure Description
The given device is a result of rigorous testing and years of success in using EUS-guided transmural drainage in various gallbladder-related diseases, for example, peripancreatic fluid collection and acute cholecystitis. The construction of the device presents twisted, fully covered, self-expandable metal stents (SEMS) with spiral-coiled ends. The stents are eight millimeters in diameter and six centimeters in length.
As an alternative to plastic and tubular stents that have an array of problems attached to them, the newly designed stents have the potential to address these problems. The newly created design focuses on combining the advantages of the previous models without their setbacks and complications (Huh et al., 2020). For example, studies have shown that twisted, fully covered, self-expandable metal stents could be removed with a higher success rate than their predecessors.
Benefits and Risks of the Treatment
As has been stated above, the previous generations of stents have been shown to have several setbacks. For example, double-pigtail plastic stents proved to be challenging to place even with EUS guidance. Furthermore, lumen-apposing metal stents can cause lethal bleeding due to stent migration.
The new device provides an opportunity to prevent these adverse outcomes by providing firm anchoring, sufficient stent caliber, and easy removability. The clinical trials have proved to be a resounding success in terms of the device placement between the gallbladder and stomach (Huh et al., 2020). As with any new procedure, the risks are connected with the lack of experience in managing the device. In addition, there are established risks linked with tubular self-expanding metal stents, such as stent migration and leakage.
Registered Nurse and Patient Safety
When implementing a new technology, a nurse ought to look out for various complications and risk factors. The one crucial patient problem that the nurse will have to focus on is stent migration. The nurse would have to be wary of the stent’s original position, which could be observed on the EUS monitor.
In case of migration, the device would display movement from the original position from left to right. In addition, the nurse would have to look out for bleeding and excessive friction, which would indicate that the patient is moving in an unsafe direction. Stable anchoring needs to be communicated comprehensively to other nurses and providers.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is imperative to identify possible issues and essential communication points when working with a new treatment technology. The newly designed device for gallbladder drainage, which has twisted, fully covered, self-expandable metal stents with spirally coiled ends, exceeds its predecessors in safety and removability. However, it does possess certain risks, such as the potential for leakage and migration. Therefore, the registered nurses who might work with it need to consider these possibilities and be ready to manage them.
Reference
Huh, G., Choi, J. H., Lee, S. H., Paik, W. H., Ryu, J. K., Kim, Y. T.,… & Kang, S. G. (2020). Innovation of EUS-guided transmural gallbladder drainage using a novel self-expanding metal stent. Scientific Reports, 10(1), 1–7.