Preliminary Trial of Rebamipide for Prevention of Low-Dose Aspirin-Induced Gastric Injury in Healthy Subjects: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Cross-Over Study

Although low-dose aspirin is widely used, since it is a cheap and effective means of prevention of cardiovascular events, it can cause hemorrhagic gastrointestinal complications. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of rebamipide in preventing low-dose aspirin-induced gastric injury. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial was performed in twenty healthy volunteers. Aspirin 81 mg was administered with placebo or rebamipide 300 mg three times daily for 7 consecutive days. The rebamipide group exhibited significant prevention of erythema in the antrum compared with the placebo group (p = 0.0393, respectively). Results for the body and fornix did not differ significantly between the placebo and rebamipide groups. In conclusion, short-term administration of low-dose aspirin induced slight gastric mucosal injury in the antrum, but not in the body or fornix. Rebamipide may be useful for preventing low-dose aspirin-induced gastric mucosal injury, especially which confined to the antrum

Multicenter study on hemorrhagic risk of heparin bridging therapy for periendoscopic thromboprophylaxis

Background: For endoscopic interventions, heparin bridging therapy is recommended in patients who are at high risk from interruption of antithrombotic therapy. Although heparin bridging has been reported to be effective in preventing thrombosis, several reports have raised concerns about increased risk of bleeding. The aim of this study was to clarify complications of hepari bridging therapy in therapeutic endoscopy. Methods: A nationwide multicenter survey using questionnaire was performed about patients undergoing therapeutic endoscopy with heparin bridging. Patients who underwent therapeutic endoscopy without heparin bridging therapy were considered as controls. Compliance scores of heparin bridging therapy guideline were employed, and association was analyzed between the score and occurrence of post-procedural bleeding. Results: The incidence of post-procedural bleeding was significantly higher (13.5 %, 33/245) in the heparin group compared with the control group (2.7 %, 299/11102)(p < 0.001). Thrombosis occurred in 1 patient each in the two groups. In the heparin group, post-procedural bleeding was more likely to be delayed bleeding. Dose adjustment of heparin was a significant factor contributing to bleeding. The compliance score of heparin bridging therapy guideline was significantly higher in those who suffered bleeding. Conclusions: Heparin bridging therapy significantly increased the risk of post-procedural bleeding compared with the control. The bleeding risk was associated with greater adherence with guidelines for heparin bridging therapy

Endoscopic ultrasonography features of gastric mucosal cobblestone-like changes from a proton-pump inhibitor

A 68-year-old man with no symptoms presented to Hokkaido University Hospital for esophagogastroduodenoscopy screening. He had a history of Helicobacter pylori eradication. Initial esophagogastroduodenoscopy showed no gastric cobblestone-like mucosa or gastric cracked mucosa. After 1 year, he received esomeprazole (20 mg) once daily for heartburn at another hospital. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy was performed after 2 years of esomeprazole administration. Endoscopic findings showed that after H. pylori eradication, according to the Kyoto classification, gastric cobblestone-like mucosa presented in the gastric body area. Dilation of the oval crypt opening and intervening part in the gastric cobblestone-like mucosa was detected by endoscopy with narrow band imaging. Endoscopic ultrasonography revealed a thick gastric second layer and sporadic small a-echoic lesions in the low-echoic thickened second layer in the gastric cobblestone-like mucosa. The gastric cobblestone-like mucosa biopsy specimen showed parietal cell protrusions and oxyntic gland dilatations. Recently, we reported that gastric mucosal changes such as gastric cracked mucosa and gastric cobblestone-like mucosa were caused by protonpump inhibitors; however, the gastric cobblestone-like mucosa was not examined by endoscopic ultrasonography. In this case, endoscopic ultrasonography findings suggested that oxyntic gland dilatations caused the elevated gastric mucosa, such as gastric cobblestone-like mucosa, from the use of proton-pump inhibitors

Eradication of Helicobacter pylori for primary gastric cancer and secondary gastric cancer after endoscopic mucosal resection.

Because most gastric cancers develop from a background of Helicobacter pylori-infected gastric mucosa, H. pylori plays an important role in gastric carcinogenesis. Therefore, eradication of H. pylori may inhibit the incidence of gastric cancers. In experimental studies, H. pylori eradication has proved to act as a prophylaxis against gastric cancer. However, the results of recent randomized controlled studies are absolutely contradictory. In Japan, mucosal gastric cancer is usually resected by endoscopic treatment. As only a small part of the gastric mucosa is resected, secondary gastric cancer after endoscopic resection of the primary gastric cancer often develops at another site in the stomach. A nonrandomized Japanese study involving 132 early gastric cancer patients reported that eradication of H. pylori after endoscopic resection tended to reduce the development of secondary gastric cancer. Also, a retrospective multicenter survey indicated that the incidence rate of secondary gastric cancer in H. pylori-eradicated patients was about one-third that among patients in the noneradication group. We conducted a large-scale multicenter randomized trial to confirm the effect of H. pylori eradication on secondary and residual gastric cancer after endoscopic resection. This study was begun in 2003 and is ongoing at present. Diagnosis of a new carcinoma at another site of the stomach is defined as the primary end point, and recurrence of tumors at the resection site as a secondary end point. A total of 542 subjects have been enrolled in the study. This study will have the statistical power to demonstrate whether H. pylori eradication decreases the incidence and recurrence of gastric cancer

Human intestinal spirochetosis is significantly associated with sessile serrated adenomas/polyps

It remains unclear whether or not human intestinal spirochetosis (HIS) has any associated symptoms or lesions. In this study, we assessed the prevalence of HIS in sessile serrated adenomas/polyps (SSA/Ps) and their possible association. Following identification of early cecal cancer with SSA/P accompanied by a colonization of HIS, we went on to conduct a retrospective case-control study using endoscopically resected SSA/P specimens to examine the frequency of HIS infection in SSA/Ps. Nineteen SSA/P cases and 172 controls were obtained. The rate of HIS infection was significantly higher at 52.6% (10/19) in the SSA/P cases compared to the controls at 8.1% (14/172). Our SSA/P series were associated with a remarkably higher rate of HIS than controls or than previously reported. This is the first report to provide evidence for potential association between HIS and SSA/Ps. (C) 2014 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved

Pathophysiological Classification of Functional Dyspepsia Using a Novel Drinking-Ultrasonography Test

Background: Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a heterogeneous disease characterized by various upper abdominal symptoms. The major mechanism of FD symptoms includes impaired fundic accommodation, delayed gastric emptying, and visceral hypersensitivity. We developed a novel drinking-ultrasonography to combine a drink test with ultrasonography to assess gastric motility and sensory function of FD patients. Method: Subjects were sixty successive FD patients according to the Rome III criteria. A drinking-ultrasonography test was performed after subjects had fasted. The subjects ingested 200 ml of water at two-minute intervals four times (total 800 ml) through a straw. The maximum cross-section of the proximal stomach was visualized before water intake, after each water intake, and 5 and 10 minutes after the completion of drinking using extracorporeal ultrasonography. Abdominal symptoms were evaluated using the visual analog scale (VAS) a total of 5 times. Normal range of cross-sectional area and VAS were set using average ±2 standard deviations of 33 healthy volunteers. Cases outside the normal range were diagnosed with a motor or sensory disorder. Results: The drinking-ultrasonography test classified FD patients into four groups without adverse effect or trouble. The distribution of each group was 27% in the normal group, 15% in the impaired relaxation group, 10% in the delayed emptying group, and 48% in the visceral hypersensitivity group. There was no significant correlation between the pathophysiological classification and subtypes of FD defined by the Rome III criteria. Conclusion: We developed a novel drinking-ultrasonography test that was effective in classifying FD patients according to pathophysiological features