Gut Permeability in Irritable Bowel Explored with Confocal Laser Endomicroscopy
Dr. Julia Liu and colleagues at the University of Alberta in Canada measured epithelial gaps, or the spaces in the lining of the gut, with probe-based confocal laser endomicroscopy, an advanced endoscopic tool to obtain very high-resolution images of the mucosal layer of the GI tract. “The test is positive in about two thirds (64 percent) of patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), and negative in vast majority of the healthy controls (90 percent). “These findings suggest that a patient with a positive test has a 73 percent chance of having IBS,” said Dr. Liu.
Chronic Electrical Stimulation at Acupressure Points May Relieve Stomach Woes for Diabetics
Diabetic patients who suffer from debilitating gastroparesis may find that chronic electrical stimulation at specific acupuncture points could relieve symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, early satiety, abdominal fullness, upper abdominal pain and bloating, according to lead investigator Jiande Chen, PhD, of the University of Texas Medical Branch.
Impact of Gender, Race and Obesity on Colorectal Cancer, Adenoma Detection Rates
Body mass index seems to have a linear association with advanced adenoma detection rates in an African American and Hispanic male cohort, where a trend towards higher right–sided advanced adenomas is also seen in this study group, according to researchers from The Brooklyn Hospital Center.
Researchers from The University of Texas Medical Branch collected colonoscopy data retrospectively from a university-based hospital and included all average risk screening colonoscopies performed between 2006 and 2011 that found men in the study group had a significantly higher prevalence of adenomas and advanced adenomas compared to women.
Type 2 Diabetes May Increase the Risk of Barrett’s Esophagus
Patients with Type 2 diabetes may face an increased risk for Barrett’s esophagus, regardless of other risk factors including smoking, alcohol consumption, obesity and reflux, according to researchers from the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. This risk may be almost doubled, said co-investigator, Prasad G. Iyer, MD, MS, who added that it may also be higher in men with diabetes likely because men tend to carry more fat in the abdomen compared to women who tend to carry weight around the hips and thighs.
Studies Suggest Possible Overlap of IBS Symptoms and Inflammatory Bowel Disease
In one study, researchers from California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco found that mesalamine granules, an anti-inflammatory drug used to treat ulcerative colitis, improved abdominal pain and stool consistency in diarrhea predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). In a second study, researchers from Washington University in St. Louis found that tricyclic antidepressants –which are commonly used to treat IBS patients—may be effective in managing moderately-severe functional symptoms such as abdominal pain and diarrhea in patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).
Studies Explore Racial Disparities in IBD Symptoms and Therapy
In what researchers from the University of Chicago called one of the largest studies of African Americans with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), co-investigator David T. Rubin, MD, FACG and team analyzed the type of diseases seen in the African Americans compared to Caucasians. They identified a few important differences in this population, suggesting African Americans were more likely to have extra-intestinal manifestations of their IBD, including joint pain and skin inflammation. Also, they reported that Crohn’s disease patients in the cohort were less likely to have small intestinal involvement. Abstract
Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine explored racial differences in the prevalence of severe fistulizing perianal Crohn's disease in cross-sectional study of all adult patients with Crohn’s disease treated with infliximab at The Mount Sinai Hospital. In the study cohort, African-Americans with Crohn's disease are significantly more likely than others, and Caucasians significantly less likely, to have severe fistulizing perianal disease.
In a third study, researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine suggest that African American Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) patients were less likely to use infliximab therapy than Caucasian IBD patients after reviewing data from the Premier Perspective Comparative Database. However lead investigator Mark H. Flasar, MD, noted that these results “represent the preliminary step in a larger and more detailed analysis, and should be interpreted with caution.”
