Magnetic Anastomosis

Magnets have been employed for a variety of gastrointestinal indications, including magnet capsule endoscope manipulation, magnet-assisted enteral tube placement and electromagnetic tube tracking, percutaneous enteral access, magnetic navigation during colonoscopy, magnet-assisted stent and foreign body removal, anchoring systems to facilitate endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) or natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) procedures, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) management, and finally magnetic compression anastomoses. In this review, we will focus on the current state of magnetic anastomosis systems and review applications in the endoscopic surgery space.