Gastrointestinal endoscopy and work-related injuries: an international survey - letter to editor

We read with great interest the article “Gastrointestinal endoscopy and work-related injuries: an international survey” by Veronica Bessone et al ¹ , particularly the section on work-related musculoskeletal injuries and believe that the authors' study may help to address them.

We appreciate the authors including several work-related musculoskeletal injuries (MSI) encountered by gastrointestinal endoscopists in this paper. However, they did not include ganglion cysts – a common hand disorder among clinicians. Ganglion cysts are frequently cited as the most prevalent soft tissue mass around the hand and wrist, with 70% occurring on the dorsal wrist. Among the general population, the incidence of wrist ganglion cysts is estimated at 3.28 per 10,000 person-years ² . To our knowledge, there are no clinical studies examining the occupational prevalence of ganglion cysts among gastrointestinal endoscopists.

The literature shows that 42% of ganglion cyst patients had spontaneous resolution with conservative treatment ³ . This partially explains their omission, as data are lacking on whether endoscopists, as medical professionals, would opt for invasive treatment at different rates. Further research into ganglion cyst prevalence remains warranted alongside more common musculoskeletal hand and wrist injuries in this group, who require flexible wrist and finger motion.

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