Digestive Health Center

Obesity and alcohol act together to increase the risk of liver disease

2010-03-12T19:54:00-08:00

Research: Body mass index and risk of liver cirrhosis in middle aged women in UK: prospective study; Research: Effect of body mass index and alcohol consumption on liver disease: analysis of data from two prospective cohort studies Two studies published on bmj.com today show that obesity and alcohol act together to increase the risk of liver disease in both men and women. Together, these findings have important clinical and public health implications.

Preventing gastric cancer with antibiotics

2010-03-12T19:19:00-08:00

Helicobacter pylori, a bacterium found in about 50% of humans worldwide, can cause stomach ulcers and, in extreme cases, gastric cancer. In an article for F1000 Medicine Reports, Seiji Shiota and Yoshio Yamaoka discuss the possible eradication of H. pylori infections Infection by the H. pylori bacterium can approach 100% in developing countries. Most infected people do not have symptoms, but many develop problems including stomach ulcers. H. pylori causes more than 90% of all duodenal ulcers and can also contribute to the development of gastric cancer, which is one of the world’s biggest medical problems. Shiota and Yamaoka, from Oita University, Japan, and Baylor College of Medicine, Texas, respectively, report on a large multicenter trial in Japan. Patients with early gastric cancer were randomly treated with H. pylori antibiotics after surgical resection and were followed up for three years. Patients who received antibiotic treatment had a significantly lower risk of developing gastric cancer, confirming the importance of careful management of H. pylori.

Biofeedback may ease chronic constipation

2010-03-06T11:54:01-08:00

Biofeedback training can have long-lasting benefits in people who suffer from chronic constipation due to a condition called “dyssynergic defecation,” new research indicates. People with this condition have difficulty emptying their bowels because the muscles in their rectum and anus are out of sync. Consequently, when they attempt a bowel movement, their bowels empty incompletely or not all. Biofeedback teaches patients how to get their bowel and anal muscles to work normally to produce a complete and satisfactory evacuation. Dr. Satish Rao and colleagues at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City, found that biofeedback using sensors monitoring the bowel and anus can indeed help train adults with this type of chronic constipation to have normal bowel movements. While an earlier study by Rao’s team showed a benefit at three months, their current study showed benefits lasting out to one year.

Gene links to celiac disease may help drug search

2010-03-01T20:05:00-08:00

Scientists have identified new genetic links to celiac disease and say their findings could speed the search for better ways to diagnose and treat the gluten-intolerance disorder. British researchers scanned the genetic maps of more than 9,400 celiac patients and found areas of immune system disturbance which lead to the development of the auto-immune disease, which affects around one percent of people. The researchers also found “substantial evidence” that genes associated with celiac disease may also be linked to many other common chronic immune diseases, such as type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.

Diapers’ contents could change way of finding intestinal disease

2010-02-22T17:38:00-08:00

A medical test initially researched for aging adults also could be helpful for premature babies, according to scientists with Texas AgriLife Research. The procedure, which uses fecal samples rather than the oft-dreaded colonoscopy, was developed by Dr. Robert Chapkin and his colleagues, who have been studying the noninvasive technique at the genetic level for more than a decade. “Babies have many, many intestinal conditions that can threaten their lives, such as necrotizing enterocolitis, or NEC, in premature infants,” said Chapkin, a nutritional scientist. “Our test, we believe, may have utility for determining a baby’s risk, and then would allow a physician to take different strategies in order to abate or prevent the possibility of this life threatening disorder.”

The Liver: Multitasker, Regenerator and Vital for Health

2010-02-12T09:29:00-08:00

The liver, the largest internal organ, is the body’s ultimate multitasker. While the liver is not glamorous or sentimental—there are no love songs about a broken liver—it simultaneously plays a key role in the body’s metabolic, digestive and regulatory systems. A Special Report in the February issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter offers comprehensive coverage of the liver, its function, types of liver diseases and treatments. Some highlights from the report include: A multitasker: Among its many functions, the liver helps regulate blood sugar levels, converts consumed fats into usable fuel for cells and transforms fats and sugars into protein building blocks.

Distinct demographic profiles between Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis

2010-02-05T17:01:00-08:00

Although inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) [comprising mainly Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC)] is thought to affect about 150 000 people in the United Kingdom, the prevalence of severe IBD is not known. Mortality following hospitalization for IBD is significant but little has been reported on long-term follow-up. A research article to be published on January 28, 2010 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question. The research team from United Kingdom determined the hospitalized prevalence of severe IBD and subsequent 5-year mortality in Wales, and investigated associations between severe IBD and social deprivation, distance travelled to hospital, and other socio-demographic characteristics. They found that hospitalization for severe CD was more common among women than men and it peaked among younger people aged 16㈞ years. UC was similar among men and women and was more common among older people. There was no link between social deprivation and UC, but CD was more common among more deprived social groups.

Shape of Barrett’s epithelium effects prevalence of erosive esophagitis

2010-02-05T16:57:00-08:00

Barrett’s epithelium is recognized as a complication of erosive esophagitis and is the pre-malignant condition for adenocarcinoma of the esophagus. A research team from Yokohama City University School of Medicine hypothesized that some macroscopic features of Barrett’s epithelium might be useful for identifying a subgroup with a high risk for the development of esophageal adenocarcinoma. Their study will be published on January 28, 2010 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology. They enrolled 869 patients who underwent endoscopy during a health checkup at their hospital. Based on the Prague C & M Criteria, they originally classified cases of Barrett’s epithelium into two types based on its shape, namely, flame-like and lotus-like Barrett’s epithelium, and into two groups based on its length, its C extent < 2 cm, and ≥ 2 cm.

Vitamin D supplements could fight Crohn’s disease

2010-01-27T23:02:01-08:00

A new study has found that Vitamin D, readily available in supplements or cod liver oil, can counter the effects of Crohn’s disease. John White, an endocrinologist at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, led a team of scientists from McGill University and the Université de Montréal who present their findings about the inflammatory bowel disease in the latest Journal of Biological Chemistry. “Our data suggests, for the first time, that Vitamin D deficiency can contribute to Crohn’s disease,” says Dr. White, a professor in McGill’s Department of Physiology, noting that people from northern countries, which receive less sunlight that is necessary for the fabrication of Vitamin D by the human body, are particularly vulnerable to Crohn’s disease. Vitamin D, in its active form (1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D), is a hormone that binds to receptors in the body’s cells. Dr. White’s interest in Vitamin D was originally in its effects in mitigating cancer. Because his results kept pointing to Vitamin D’s effects on the immune system, specifically the innate immune system that acts as the body’s first defense against microbial invaders, he investigated Crohn’s disease. “It’s a defect in innate immune handling of intestinal bacteria that leads to an inflammatory response that may lead to an autoimmune condition,” stresses Dr. White.

Bacterial phylotype alterations in irritable bowel syndrome

2010-01-16T00:11:00-08:00

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common gastrointestinal functional disorder that can greatly affect the patient’s well being. Multiple interacting mechanisms, including alterations in the intestinal microbiota, are suspected to lie behind IBS aetiology. A research article to be published on December 21, 2009 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question. The research team from Finland quantified fourteen bacterial phylotypes which corresponded with bacterial species of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract from faecal samples of IBS patients and healthy controls. In their study, assays for analyzing phylotype specific bacterial alterations in association to IBS were developed and applied. They found a phylotype with 85% similarity to C. thermosuccinogenes was quantified in significantly different quantities among the diarrhoea-predominant (IBS-D) and control subjects, IBS-D and mixed symptom-subtype (IBS-M) subjects. A phylotype with 94% similarity to R. torques was more prevalent in IBS-D patients’ intestinal microbiota than in that of control subjects. A phylotype with 93% similarity to R. torques was associated with control samples when compared with IBS-M. Additionally, a R. bromii-like phylotype was associated with constipation-predominant (IBS-C) patients in comparison to control subjects.