Pub Date : 2024-06-01Epub Date: 2024-06-29DOI: 10.14740/gr1724
Mohamed Bakry, Peta Hoffmann, Rajivi Prematunga, Philip Keightley, Kavitha Subramaniam
Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) often has its onset during late childhood and adolescence, a time of significant change. Young people may be required to transition from a pediatric to an adult IBD service during this time. The transition from pediatric to adult services can be a high-risk period for poor outcomes for emerging adults with IBD. We seek to understand the concerns of patients and carers during this period.
Methods: Semi-structured interview and interpretative phenomenological analysis were used to explore the experiences of 16 young persons and 10 of their parents during transition.
Results: The narrative analysis reflected the importance of three aspects of transition to the young people and their parents during transition. The process of adjusting to illness, parents letting go, and the young person "growing up" were key themes.
Conclusion: In addition to patient needs, parental grief and adjustment may be easily overlooked in the transition period: children who only recently needed intensive parental care and involvement may now be seeking higher degrees of autonomy. These findings indicate a role for including psychological interventions addressing the well-being of parents in transition programs.
{"title":"The Transitioning From Pediatric to Adult Inflammatory Bowel Disease Services: A Qualitative Study of Adolescents and Their Parents.","authors":"Mohamed Bakry, Peta Hoffmann, Rajivi Prematunga, Philip Keightley, Kavitha Subramaniam","doi":"10.14740/gr1724","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1724","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) often has its onset during late childhood and adolescence, a time of significant change. Young people may be required to transition from a pediatric to an adult IBD service during this time. The transition from pediatric to adult services can be a high-risk period for poor outcomes for emerging adults with IBD. We seek to understand the concerns of patients and carers during this period.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Semi-structured interview and interpretative phenomenological analysis were used to explore the experiences of 16 young persons and 10 of their parents during transition.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The narrative analysis reflected the importance of three aspects of transition to the young people and their parents during transition. The process of adjusting to illness, parents letting go, and the young person \"growing up\" were key themes.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>In addition to patient needs, parental grief and adjustment may be easily overlooked in the transition period: children who only recently needed intensive parental care and involvement may now be seeking higher degrees of autonomy. These findings indicate a role for including psychological interventions addressing the well-being of parents in transition programs.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 3","pages":"146-149"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2024-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11236337/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141590127","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has advanced through the utilization of photosensitizers and specific-wavelength light (≥ 600 nm). However, the widespread adoption of PDT is still impeded by high equipment costs and stringent laser safety requirements. Porphyrins, crucial in PDT, have another absorbance peak of blue light (λ = 380 - 500 nm). This peak corresponds to the wavelength of narrow-band imaging (NBI) (λ = 390 - 445 nm), an image-enhancement technology integrated into endoscopes by Olympus Medical Systems. The study aimed to investigate the potential of widely adopted NBI as a PDT light source for superficial cancers via endoscopes.
Methods: Esophageal and biliary cancers were selected for investigation. Human esophageal cancer cell lines (KYSE30, KYSE70, KYSE170) and cholangiocarcinoma cell lines (HuCCT-1, KKU-213) were subjected to verteporfin-mediated PDT under NBI light (λ = 390 - 445 nm). Assessments included spectrometry, crystal violet staining, and fluorescein imaging of singlet oxygen generation and apoptosis.
Results: Verteporfin exhibited a peak (λ = 436 nm) consistent with the NBI spectrum, suggesting compatibility with NBI light. NBI light significantly inhibited the growth of esophageal and biliary cancer cells. The half-maximum effective concentration (EC50) values (5 J/cm2) for KYSE30, KYSE70, KYSE170, HuCCT-1, and KKU-213 were calculated as 2.78 ± 0.37µM, 1.76 ± 1.20 µM, 0.77 ± 0.16 µM, 0.65 ± 0.18 µM, and 0.32 ± 0.04 µM, respectively. Verteporfin accumulation in mitochondria, coupled with singlet oxygen generation and observed apoptotic changes, suggests effective PDT under NBI light.
Conclusions: NBI is a promising PDT light source for superficial cancers via endoscopes.
{"title":"The Potential of Narrow-Band Imaging as a Novel Light Source for Photodynamic Therapy for Superficial Cancers via Endoscopes.","authors":"Yusuke Nakada, Takaaki Sugihara, Maria Tanaka, Wataru Hamamoto, Tsutomu Kanda, Takuki Sakaguchi, Hiroki Kurumi, Takumi Onoyama, Yuichiro Ikebuchi, Tomoaki Takata, Hajime Isomoto, Naoyuki Yamaguchi","doi":"10.14740/gr1694","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1694","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has advanced through the utilization of photosensitizers and specific-wavelength light (≥ 600 nm). However, the widespread adoption of PDT is still impeded by high equipment costs and stringent laser safety requirements. Porphyrins, crucial in PDT, have another absorbance peak of blue light (λ = 380 - 500 nm). This peak corresponds to the wavelength of narrow-band imaging (NBI) (λ = 390 - 445 nm), an image-enhancement technology integrated into endoscopes by Olympus Medical Systems. The study aimed to investigate the potential of widely adopted NBI as a PDT light source for superficial cancers via endoscopes.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Esophageal and biliary cancers were selected for investigation. Human esophageal cancer cell lines (KYSE30, KYSE70, KYSE170) and cholangiocarcinoma cell lines (HuCCT-1, KKU-213) were subjected to verteporfin-mediated PDT under NBI light (λ = 390 - 445 nm). Assessments included spectrometry, crystal violet staining, and fluorescein imaging of singlet oxygen generation and apoptosis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Verteporfin exhibited a peak (λ = 436 nm) consistent with the NBI spectrum, suggesting compatibility with NBI light. NBI light significantly inhibited the growth of esophageal and biliary cancer cells. The half-maximum effective concentration (EC<sub>50</sub>) values (5 J/cm<sup>2</sup>) for KYSE30, KYSE70, KYSE170, HuCCT-1, and KKU-213 were calculated as 2.78 ± 0.37µM, 1.76 ± 1.20 µM, 0.77 ± 0.16 µM, 0.65 ± 0.18 µM, and 0.32 ± 0.04 µM, respectively. Verteporfin accumulation in mitochondria, coupled with singlet oxygen generation and observed apoptotic changes, suggests effective PDT under NBI light.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>NBI is a promising PDT light source for superficial cancers via endoscopes.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 2","pages":"72-81"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073458/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140876192","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-04-01Epub Date: 2024-04-30DOI: 10.14740/gr1635
Mir Zulqarnain, Fouad Jaber, Vinay Jahagirdar, Saqr Alsakarneh, Jose Gomez, Aditi Stanton, Nedhi Patel, Poonam Beniwal-Patel, Daniel Stein, Mary Otterson, Andres J Yarur
Background: The aim of the study was to investigate the risk factors associated with the development of small bowel obstruction (SBO) in Crohn's disease (CD) after small bowel resection (SBR) that are not due to active/recurrent inflammation.
Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients who had SBR for active or complicated CD. Abstracted data included demographics, phenotype, therapies for CD, endoscopic disease recurrence, and several surgical variables. The primary outcome was the development of non-inflammatory SBO (NI-SBO) within 5 years after SBR.
Results: A total of 335 patients were included. The cumulative rates of NI-SBO at 6 months, 1 year, and 5 years were 5 (1.5%), 8 (2.4%), and 29 (8.9%), respectively. Variables associated with the development of NI-SBO were active macroscopic or microscopic inflammation in the surgical margins (13 (56%) vs. 65 (27%), P = 0.004), open resection (vs. laparoscopic resection) (12 (41.4%) vs. 60 (19.5%), P = 0.0006) and a higher median number of previous resections (2 (interquartile range (IQR) 2 - 3) vs. 1 (IQR 1 - 2), P = 0.0002). Only 21% of patients who developed NI-SBO required surgical intervention.
Conclusions: The incidence of NI-SBO after SBR in CD is low and associated with inflammation at the margins of the resected bowel, previous bowel resections, and an open laparotomy approach. Most NI-SBOs resolve with medical management.
{"title":"Predictive Factors of Non-Inflammatory Small Bowel Obstruction After Bowel Resection in Crohn's Patients.","authors":"Mir Zulqarnain, Fouad Jaber, Vinay Jahagirdar, Saqr Alsakarneh, Jose Gomez, Aditi Stanton, Nedhi Patel, Poonam Beniwal-Patel, Daniel Stein, Mary Otterson, Andres J Yarur","doi":"10.14740/gr1635","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1635","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The aim of the study was to investigate the risk factors associated with the development of small bowel obstruction (SBO) in Crohn's disease (CD) after small bowel resection (SBR) that are not due to active/recurrent inflammation.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients who had SBR for active or complicated CD. Abstracted data included demographics, phenotype, therapies for CD, endoscopic disease recurrence, and several surgical variables. The primary outcome was the development of non-inflammatory SBO (NI-SBO) within 5 years after SBR.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 335 patients were included. The cumulative rates of NI-SBO at 6 months, 1 year, and 5 years were 5 (1.5%), 8 (2.4%), and 29 (8.9%), respectively. Variables associated with the development of NI-SBO were active macroscopic or microscopic inflammation in the surgical margins (13 (56%) vs. 65 (27%), P = 0.004), open resection (vs. laparoscopic resection) (12 (41.4%) vs. 60 (19.5%), P = 0.0006) and a higher median number of previous resections (2 (interquartile range (IQR) 2 - 3) vs. 1 (IQR 1 - 2), P = 0.0002). Only 21% of patients who developed NI-SBO required surgical intervention.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The incidence of NI-SBO after SBR in CD is low and associated with inflammation at the margins of the resected bowel, previous bowel resections, and an open laparotomy approach. Most NI-SBOs resolve with medical management.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 2","pages":"64-71"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073459/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140876191","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-04-01Epub Date: 2024-04-30DOI: 10.14740/gr1679
Rui Hao, Yu Sun, Yang Hu
Background: This study investigated the diagnostic efficacy of multi-slice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) perfusion imaging in evaluating peripancreatic infection in elderly patients with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP).
Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 110 elderly SAP patients treated at our hospital from March 2018 to August 2019. The study correlated MSCT perfusion imaging characteristics with peripancreatic infection in elderly SAP patients. Additionally, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were constructed to assess the diagnostic performance of MSCT perfusion imaging parameters in evaluating peripancreatic infection in elderly SAP patients.
Results: The results indicated that among all 110 elderly SAP patients, the incidence rate of peripancreatic infection was 20.91%, with a mortality rate of 0.91%. MSCT perfusion imaging revealed that after peripancreatic infection in elderly SAP patients, there was a decrease in pancreatic density, local enlargement of the pancreas, blurring of the pancreatic margins, and associated ascites. Compression/narrowing/occlusion of the splenic vein was observed in 22 patients, compression/narrowing/occlusion of the superior mesenteric vein in 17 patients, thickening/thrombosis of the portal vein in 19 patients, and collateral circulation in 21 patients. Compared to elderly SAP patients without peripancreatic infection, those with the infection showed prolonged peak times, reduced peak heights, and decreased blood flow. ROC analysis indicated that the combination of the three parameters (peak time, peak height, and blood flow) had higher specificity and area under the curve (AUC) than single parameters, with no significant difference in sensitivity between the combination and single parameters.
Conclusions: In conclusion, combining the three key MSCT perfusion imaging parameters (peak time, peak height, and blood flow) can significantly enhance the predictive efficacy for the risk of peripancreatic infection in elderly SAP patients.
背景:本研究探讨了多层螺旋计算机断层扫描(MSCT)灌注成像在评估老年重症急性胰腺炎(SAP)患者胰周感染中的诊断效果:对我院2018年3月至2019年8月收治的110例老年SAP患者的临床资料进行回顾性分析。该研究将MSCT灌注成像特征与老年SAP患者胰周感染相关联。此外,研究还构建了接收者操作特征曲线(ROC),以评估MSCT灌注成像参数在评估老年SAP患者胰周感染中的诊断性能:结果显示,在所有110例老年SAP患者中,胰周感染的发生率为20.91%,死亡率为0.91%。MSCT 灌注成像显示,老年 SAP 患者胰腺周围感染后,胰腺密度下降,胰腺局部肿大,胰腺边缘模糊,并伴有腹水。在 22 例患者中观察到脾静脉受压/狭窄/闭塞,在 17 例患者中观察到肠系膜上静脉受压/狭窄/闭塞,在 19 例患者中观察到门静脉增粗/血栓形成,在 21 例患者中观察到侧支循环。与未患胰周感染的 SAP 老年患者相比,患胰周感染的患者表现出峰值时间延长、峰值高度降低和血流量减少。ROC分析表明,与单一参数相比,三个参数(峰时、峰高和血流)的组合具有更高的特异性和曲线下面积(AUC),而组合参数与单一参数的敏感性没有显著差异:总之,将 MSCT 的三个关键灌注成像参数(峰值时间、峰值高度和血流量)结合起来,可显著提高对老年 SAP 患者胰周感染风险的预测效果。
{"title":"A Comprehensive Study on the Diagnostic Value of Multi-Slice Computed Tomography for Peripancreatic Infection in Elderly With Severe Acute Pancreatitis.","authors":"Rui Hao, Yu Sun, Yang Hu","doi":"10.14740/gr1679","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1679","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>This study investigated the diagnostic efficacy of multi-slice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) perfusion imaging in evaluating peripancreatic infection in elderly patients with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 110 elderly SAP patients treated at our hospital from March 2018 to August 2019. The study correlated MSCT perfusion imaging characteristics with peripancreatic infection in elderly SAP patients. Additionally, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were constructed to assess the diagnostic performance of MSCT perfusion imaging parameters in evaluating peripancreatic infection in elderly SAP patients.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The results indicated that among all 110 elderly SAP patients, the incidence rate of peripancreatic infection was 20.91%, with a mortality rate of 0.91%. MSCT perfusion imaging revealed that after peripancreatic infection in elderly SAP patients, there was a decrease in pancreatic density, local enlargement of the pancreas, blurring of the pancreatic margins, and associated ascites. Compression/narrowing/occlusion of the splenic vein was observed in 22 patients, compression/narrowing/occlusion of the superior mesenteric vein in 17 patients, thickening/thrombosis of the portal vein in 19 patients, and collateral circulation in 21 patients. Compared to elderly SAP patients without peripancreatic infection, those with the infection showed prolonged peak times, reduced peak heights, and decreased blood flow. ROC analysis indicated that the combination of the three parameters (peak time, peak height, and blood flow) had higher specificity and area under the curve (AUC) than single parameters, with no significant difference in sensitivity between the combination and single parameters.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>In conclusion, combining the three key MSCT perfusion imaging parameters (peak time, peak height, and blood flow) can significantly enhance the predictive efficacy for the risk of peripancreatic infection in elderly SAP patients.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 2","pages":"82-89"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073457/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140876188","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a group of chronic inflammatory gastrointestinal disorders that are caused by genetic susceptibility and environmental factors and affects a significant portion of the global population. The gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) is known to play a crucial role in immune modulation and maintaining gut microbiota balance. Dysbiosis in the latter has a known link to IBD. Therefore, the increasing prevalence of adenoidectomy in children should be explored for its potential association with IBD. The objective of this paper was to assess the association between adenoid tissue removal and the risk of developing Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC).
Methods: We conducted a pooled meta-analysis to evaluate the extended clinical outcomes in patients who underwent appendicectomy and tonsillectomy compared to those who did not. Our approach involved systematically searching the PubMed database for relevant observational studies written in English. We followed the Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE) guidelines to collect data from various time periods, and to address the diversity in study results; we employed a random-effects analysis that considered heterogeneity. For outcomes, odds ratios (ORs) were pooled using a random-effects model.
Results: Seven studies, out of a total of 114,537, met our inclusion criteria. Our meta-analysis revealed a significant association between appendicectomy and CD (OR: 1.57; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.01 - 2.43; heterogeneity I2 = 93%). Similarly, we found a significant association between tonsillectomy and CD (OR: 1.93; 95% CI: 0.96 - 3.89; I2 = 62%). However, no significant association was observed between appendicectomy and UC (OR: 0.60; 95% CI: 0.24 - 1.47; I2 = 96%), while a modest association was found between tonsillectomy and UC (OR: 1.24; 95% CI: 1.18 - 1.30; I2 = 0%).
Conclusions: In summary, we found that the trend of appendicectomy is linked to higher odds of CD, and tonsillectomy is more likely associated with increased odds for both CD and UC, with a risk of bias present.
{"title":"Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue Surgeries as a Possible Risk for Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.","authors":"Rutvi Amin, Aditya Mansabdar, Hyundam Gu, Bhavani Gangineni, Neev Mehta, Harini Patel, Neel Patel, Srishti Laller, Suprada Vinayak, Mohammed Ali Abdulqader, Hardik Jain, Amitjeet Singh Rekhraj, Harshini Adimoulame, Gurinder Singh, Jose Moonjely Davis, Urvish Patel, Harmeet Gill","doi":"10.14740/gr1672","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1672","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a group of chronic inflammatory gastrointestinal disorders that are caused by genetic susceptibility and environmental factors and affects a significant portion of the global population. The gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) is known to play a crucial role in immune modulation and maintaining gut microbiota balance. Dysbiosis in the latter has a known link to IBD. Therefore, the increasing prevalence of adenoidectomy in children should be explored for its potential association with IBD. The objective of this paper was to assess the association between adenoid tissue removal and the risk of developing Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a pooled meta-analysis to evaluate the extended clinical outcomes in patients who underwent appendicectomy and tonsillectomy compared to those who did not. Our approach involved systematically searching the PubMed database for relevant observational studies written in English. We followed the Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (MOOSE) guidelines to collect data from various time periods, and to address the diversity in study results; we employed a random-effects analysis that considered heterogeneity. For outcomes, odds ratios (ORs) were pooled using a random-effects model.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Seven studies, out of a total of 114,537, met our inclusion criteria. Our meta-analysis revealed a significant association between appendicectomy and CD (OR: 1.57; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.01 - 2.43; heterogeneity I<sup>2</sup> = 93%). Similarly, we found a significant association between tonsillectomy and CD (OR: 1.93; 95% CI: 0.96 - 3.89; I<sup>2</sup> = 62%). However, no significant association was observed between appendicectomy and UC (OR: 0.60; 95% CI: 0.24 - 1.47; I<sup>2</sup> = 96%), while a modest association was found between tonsillectomy and UC (OR: 1.24; 95% CI: 1.18 - 1.30; I<sup>2</sup> = 0%).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>In summary, we found that the trend of appendicectomy is linked to higher odds of CD, and tonsillectomy is more likely associated with increased odds for both CD and UC, with a risk of bias present.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 2","pages":"90-99"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073456/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140876190","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-04-01Epub Date: 2024-04-30DOI: 10.14740/gr1707
Alexander Kusnik, Amulya Penmetsa, Farooq Chaudhary, Keerthi Renjith, Gopal Ramaraju, Marie Laryea, Johane P Allard
Sarcopenia, frailty, and malnutrition in patients with liver cirrhosis are commonly observed and are associated with higher long-term mortality. Therefore, recognizing patients with increased nutritional risk and providing recommended interventions are essential in the long- and short-term management of cirrhosis, especially as alcoholic and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease continues to rise. Various assessment tools are available to gauge frailty and malnutrition but are infrequently used. Given the global burden of liver cirrhosis, periodic screening for malnutrition, sarcopenia, and frailty is desperately needed as it improves liver transplantation outcomes. Necessary steps include addressing knowledge gaps in professional healthcare workers and patients and using standardized assessment tools to counteract physical deconditioning as early as possible. One potential method for assessing sarcopenia involves using computed tomography to evaluate the skeletal muscle index. Regarding frailty, useful tools for longitudinal assessment include the liver frailty index and the Karnofsky performance status. Addressing educational requirements related to malnutrition involves seeking guidance from dieticians, who can provide counseling on achieving sufficient calorie and protein intake to combat the progression of malnutrition.
{"title":"Clinical Overview of Sarcopenia, Frailty, and Malnutrition in Patients With Liver Cirrhosis.","authors":"Alexander Kusnik, Amulya Penmetsa, Farooq Chaudhary, Keerthi Renjith, Gopal Ramaraju, Marie Laryea, Johane P Allard","doi":"10.14740/gr1707","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1707","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Sarcopenia, frailty, and malnutrition in patients with liver cirrhosis are commonly observed and are associated with higher long-term mortality. Therefore, recognizing patients with increased nutritional risk and providing recommended interventions are essential in the long- and short-term management of cirrhosis, especially as alcoholic and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease continues to rise. Various assessment tools are available to gauge frailty and malnutrition but are infrequently used. Given the global burden of liver cirrhosis, periodic screening for malnutrition, sarcopenia, and frailty is desperately needed as it improves liver transplantation outcomes. Necessary steps include addressing knowledge gaps in professional healthcare workers and patients and using standardized assessment tools to counteract physical deconditioning as early as possible. One potential method for assessing sarcopenia involves using computed tomography to evaluate the skeletal muscle index. Regarding frailty, useful tools for longitudinal assessment include the liver frailty index and the Karnofsky performance status. Addressing educational requirements related to malnutrition involves seeking guidance from dieticians, who can provide counseling on achieving sufficient calorie and protein intake to combat the progression of malnutrition.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 2","pages":"53-63"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2024-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11073455/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140876189","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Emphysematous pancreatitis (EP), a severe form of necrotizing infection of the pancreas, is an extremely rare medical emergency with high rates of mortality. It is characterized by intraparenchymal pancreatic or peri-pancreatic air due to either monomicrobial or polymicrobial infection with gas-forming bacteria or due to entero-pancreatic fistula. EP is classified according to timing from disease onset when air bubble signs were detected on computed tomography (CT) scan, as early onset (within 2 weeks from disease onset) or late (more than 2 weeks from disease onset). While most cases of acute pancreatitis are resolved with supportive care alone, clinical outcomes of EP, especially the early onset subtype, are very poor with high rates of morbidity and mortality. These two case reports present the clinical features, diagnostic investigations, and management of two patients admitted to our hospital with early onset fulminant EP, each investigated and managed with different approaches. The first patient underwent a more conservative treatment, with diagnosis being made 52 h following admission, and thus, intensive care unit (ICU) admission and surgery were postponed, while the second patient was diagnosed a few hours following presentation with earlier ICU admission. In this article, we will present the critical importance of early diagnosis of the aforementioned rare entity of severe pancreatitis and will consider the consequences of rapid diagnosis on disease course, morbidity and mortality.
{"title":"Fulminant Emphysematous Pancreatitis: Diagnosis Time Counts.","authors":"Basel Darawsha, Subhi Mansour, Tawfik Fahoum, Naseem Azzam, Yoram Kluger, Ahmad Assalia, Safi Khuri","doi":"10.14740/gr1671","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1671","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Emphysematous pancreatitis (EP), a severe form of necrotizing infection of the pancreas, is an extremely rare medical emergency with high rates of mortality. It is characterized by intraparenchymal pancreatic or peri-pancreatic air due to either monomicrobial or polymicrobial infection with gas-forming bacteria or due to entero-pancreatic fistula. EP is classified according to timing from disease onset when air bubble signs were detected on computed tomography (CT) scan, as early onset (within 2 weeks from disease onset) or late (more than 2 weeks from disease onset). While most cases of acute pancreatitis are resolved with supportive care alone, clinical outcomes of EP, especially the early onset subtype, are very poor with high rates of morbidity and mortality. These two case reports present the clinical features, diagnostic investigations, and management of two patients admitted to our hospital with early onset fulminant EP, each investigated and managed with different approaches. The first patient underwent a more conservative treatment, with diagnosis being made 52 h following admission, and thus, intensive care unit (ICU) admission and surgery were postponed, while the second patient was diagnosed a few hours following presentation with earlier ICU admission. In this article, we will present the critical importance of early diagnosis of the aforementioned rare entity of severe pancreatitis and will consider the consequences of rapid diagnosis on disease course, morbidity and mortality.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 1","pages":"32-36"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2024-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10923251/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140093754","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-02-01Epub Date: 2024-02-28DOI: 10.14740/gr1674
Yousaf Zafar, Ahmed Kamal Siddiqi, Nafhat Shaikh, Maria Imran, Syed Sarmad Javaid, Laila Manzoor, Arsalan Zafar Iqbal, Jan Petrasek
Background: Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a significant source of end-stage liver disease and liver failure and an indication for liver transplant (LT). Historically, LT for alcoholic liver disease (ALD) required 6 months of alcohol abstinence. Recently, it has been demonstrated that early LT (< 6 months of abstinence) in strictly selected group of patients provides survival benefit while keeping the relapse to harmful drinking at acceptable levels. This practice has been reflected in the Dallas consensus, but more data are needed to appropriately risk stratify the patient from the perspective of return to harmful alcohol drinking post-transplant. This "6-month rule" has been highly debated and recent data demonstrated that the duration of pre-transplant sobriety is not related with an increased risk of relapse to alcohol post-transplant. We performed a meta-analysis to compare the rate of alcohol relapse in individuals having standard vs. early LT.
Methods: MEDLINE and SCOPUS were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs), observational studies, and case-control studies from their inception through June 2022. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMSA) 2009 checklist guidelines were followed for this meta-analysis. Studies comparing post-transplant outcomes, such as alcohol relapse, in individuals following standard vs. early LT, were included. Reviews, case studies, conference abstracts, clinical trials with only an abstract, and studies with inadequate data for extraction were all disqualified. The data were retrieved, gathered, and examined. The random effects model was used to generate forest plots. For the analysis, a P-value of 0.05 was considered significant.
Results: Thirty-four studies were discovered in the initial search. Three studies were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis incorporating 367 patients. Mean age was 51.7 years. Out of 367 patients, 173 (47%) underwent early LT. Out of three studies included, one study demonstrated decreased probability of alcohol relapse in patients undergoing early LT, whereas the other two showed the opposite result. All of the included studies were analyzed and had minimal risk of bias. Pooled analysis demonstrates that the difference in alcohol relapse between early vs. standard LT was insignificant (odds ratio: 1.24, 95% confidence interval: 0.75 - 2.06, P = 0.40).
Conclusion: Our results show that early LT is not associated with increased risk of alcohol relapse post-transplant when compared with a mandatory 6-month abstinence period. Hence, individuals with ALD should not be categorically rejected from LT merely on the criteria of 6 months of abstinence. Other selection criteria based on the need and post-transplant outcomes should be utilized.
{"title":"Alcohol Relapse After Early Liver Transplantation in Patients With Alcoholic Liver Disease: A Meta-Analysis.","authors":"Yousaf Zafar, Ahmed Kamal Siddiqi, Nafhat Shaikh, Maria Imran, Syed Sarmad Javaid, Laila Manzoor, Arsalan Zafar Iqbal, Jan Petrasek","doi":"10.14740/gr1674","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1674","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a significant source of end-stage liver disease and liver failure and an indication for liver transplant (LT). Historically, LT for alcoholic liver disease (ALD) required 6 months of alcohol abstinence. Recently, it has been demonstrated that early LT (< 6 months of abstinence) in strictly selected group of patients provides survival benefit while keeping the relapse to harmful drinking at acceptable levels. This practice has been reflected in the Dallas consensus, but more data are needed to appropriately risk stratify the patient from the perspective of return to harmful alcohol drinking post-transplant. This \"6-month rule\" has been highly debated and recent data demonstrated that the duration of pre-transplant sobriety is not related with an increased risk of relapse to alcohol post-transplant. We performed a meta-analysis to compare the rate of alcohol relapse in individuals having standard vs. early LT.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>MEDLINE and SCOPUS were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs), observational studies, and case-control studies from their inception through June 2022. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMSA) 2009 checklist guidelines were followed for this meta-analysis. Studies comparing post-transplant outcomes, such as alcohol relapse, in individuals following standard vs. early LT, were included. Reviews, case studies, conference abstracts, clinical trials with only an abstract, and studies with inadequate data for extraction were all disqualified. The data were retrieved, gathered, and examined. The random effects model was used to generate forest plots. For the analysis, a P-value of 0.05 was considered significant.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Thirty-four studies were discovered in the initial search. Three studies were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis incorporating 367 patients. Mean age was 51.7 years. Out of 367 patients, 173 (47%) underwent early LT. Out of three studies included, one study demonstrated decreased probability of alcohol relapse in patients undergoing early LT, whereas the other two showed the opposite result. All of the included studies were analyzed and had minimal risk of bias. Pooled analysis demonstrates that the difference in alcohol relapse between early vs. standard LT was insignificant (odds ratio: 1.24, 95% confidence interval: 0.75 - 2.06, P = 0.40).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Our results show that early LT is not associated with increased risk of alcohol relapse post-transplant when compared with a mandatory 6-month abstinence period. Hence, individuals with ALD should not be categorically rejected from LT merely on the criteria of 6 months of abstinence. Other selection criteria based on the need and post-transplant outcomes should be utilized.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 1","pages":"10-14"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2024-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10923247/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140093751","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-02-01Epub Date: 2024-02-28DOI: 10.14740/gr1697
Eleazar E Montalvan-Sanchez, Renato Beas, Ahmad Karkash, Ambar Godoy, Dalton Argean Norwood, Michael Dougherty
The significant global burden of colorectal cancer accentuates disparities in access to preventive healthcare in most low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) as well as large sections of underserved populations within high-income countries. The barriers to colorectal cancer screening in economically transitioning Latin America are multiple. At the same time, immigration from these countries to the USA continues to increase. This case highlights the delays in diagnosis experienced by a recent immigrant from a country with no established colorectal cancer screening program, to an immigrant population in the USA with similar poor screening coverage. We discuss common challenges faced by Latinos in their home countries and the USA, as well as strategies that could be implemented to improve screening coverage in US immigrant populations.
{"title":"Delays in Colorectal Cancer Screening for Latino Patients: The Role of Immigrant Healthcare in Stemming the Rising Global Incidence of Colorectal Cancer.","authors":"Eleazar E Montalvan-Sanchez, Renato Beas, Ahmad Karkash, Ambar Godoy, Dalton Argean Norwood, Michael Dougherty","doi":"10.14740/gr1697","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1697","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The significant global burden of colorectal cancer accentuates disparities in access to preventive healthcare in most low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) as well as large sections of underserved populations within high-income countries. The barriers to colorectal cancer screening in economically transitioning Latin America are multiple. At the same time, immigration from these countries to the USA continues to increase. This case highlights the delays in diagnosis experienced by a recent immigrant from a country with no established colorectal cancer screening program, to an immigrant population in the USA with similar poor screening coverage. We discuss common challenges faced by Latinos in their home countries and the USA, as well as strategies that could be implemented to improve screening coverage in US immigrant populations.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 1","pages":"41-51"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2024-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10923253/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140093753","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-02-01Epub Date: 2024-02-28DOI: 10.14740/gr1689
Thiago Alexandre Martins Pinto, Helena Paes Almeida Saito, Carolina Lopes Nourani, Elaine Cristina Ataide, Ilka Fatima Santana Ferreira Boin, Gustavo Jacob Lourenco, Carmen Silvia Passos Lima
Background: Tyrosine kinase inhibitors have been used to treat hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but the outcomes of patients under treatment vary. Since the roles of clinicopathological aspects and markers of chronic inflammation/immune homeostasis in the outcome of HCC patients treated with sorafenib are still unclear, these were the aims of this study.
Methods: Patients with alcohol-induced and/or hepatitis C virus (HCV)-induced HCC (n = 182) uniformly treated with sorafenib were included in the study. Baseline clinicopathological aspects of patients were computed from the medical records. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), systemic inflammation response index (SIRI), and systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) were obtained from the hematological exam performed before the administration of sorafenib. Overall survival (OS) was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier probabilities, log-rank test, and univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazard ratio (HR) analyses.
Results: In multivariate analysis, alpha-foetoprotein (AFP) level and Child-Pugh score were predictors of OS. Patients with AFP levels higher than 157 ng/mL and Child-Pugh B or C had 1.40 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.03 - 1.91, P = 0.03) and 1.64 (95% CI: 1.07 - 2.52, P = 0.02) more chances of evolving to death than the remaining patients, respectively. NLR, PLR, LMR, SIRI, and SII did not alter the OS of HCC patients.
Conclusions: AFP level and Child-Pugh score act as independent prognostic factors in patients with alcohol and/or HCV-induced HCC treated with sorafenib, but markers of chronic inflammation/immune homeostasis seem not to alter the outcome of patients with HCC induced by alcohol and/or HCV.
{"title":"Clinicopathological Aspects and Inflammation-Immune Markers in Alcohol and/or Hepatitis C Virus-Induced Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients Treated With Sorafenib.","authors":"Thiago Alexandre Martins Pinto, Helena Paes Almeida Saito, Carolina Lopes Nourani, Elaine Cristina Ataide, Ilka Fatima Santana Ferreira Boin, Gustavo Jacob Lourenco, Carmen Silvia Passos Lima","doi":"10.14740/gr1689","DOIUrl":"10.14740/gr1689","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Tyrosine kinase inhibitors have been used to treat hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but the outcomes of patients under treatment vary. Since the roles of clinicopathological aspects and markers of chronic inflammation/immune homeostasis in the outcome of HCC patients treated with sorafenib are still unclear, these were the aims of this study.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Patients with alcohol-induced and/or hepatitis C virus (HCV)-induced HCC (n = 182) uniformly treated with sorafenib were included in the study. Baseline clinicopathological aspects of patients were computed from the medical records. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR), systemic inflammation response index (SIRI), and systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) were obtained from the hematological exam performed before the administration of sorafenib. Overall survival (OS) was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier probabilities, log-rank test, and univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazard ratio (HR) analyses.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In multivariate analysis, alpha-foetoprotein (AFP) level and Child-Pugh score were predictors of OS. Patients with AFP levels higher than 157 ng/mL and Child-Pugh B or C had 1.40 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.03 - 1.91, P = 0.03) and 1.64 (95% CI: 1.07 - 2.52, P = 0.02) more chances of evolving to death than the remaining patients, respectively. NLR, PLR, LMR, SIRI, and SII did not alter the OS of HCC patients.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>AFP level and Child-Pugh score act as independent prognostic factors in patients with alcohol and/or HCV-induced HCC treated with sorafenib, but markers of chronic inflammation/immune homeostasis seem not to alter the outcome of patients with HCC induced by alcohol and/or HCV.</p>","PeriodicalId":12461,"journal":{"name":"Gastroenterology Research","volume":"17 1","pages":"23-31"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2024-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10923249/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140093752","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}