Dietary intake, mental status, physical activity, and lifestyle affecting bowel movement frequency and stool texture in young Japanese women

Constipation is a symptom-based disorder, and its definition is mainly subjective. Patients are more concerned with ease ofpassage and consistency rather than frequency of bowel movement. Studies on bowel movement frequency and stool texture inthe general population are sparse, especially in young women. In this cross-sectional study, data obtained from self-administered questionnaires, including age, height, body weight, lifestyle, food habits, anxiety, depressive status, frequency of bowel movements,stool texture, and defecation-related symptoms were analyzed in 245 female Japanese university students. An establishedsemiquantitative questionnaire available for clinical investigation (FFQg) was used to obtain a detailed assessment of food intake and physical activity levels. Of the participants, 21.4% had bowel movements ?3 times per week and 33.3% had hard or lumpy stools ?25% and loose (mushy) or watery stools <25% of bowel movements. There was a positive association between infrequent bowel movements and hard or lumpy stools. These two situations both caused similar symptoms such as a sensation of incomplete evacuation and straining. There was no association of bowel movement frequency and stool texture with any specificnutrients and foods, dietary intake, mental status, or physical activity. Several lifestyle factors such as regular bowel movements and hesitation with evacuation were associated with bowel movement frequency and stool texture. Several lifestyle factors, but not mental, physical, or dietary intake factors, were associated with bowel movement frequency and stool texture in young Japanese women

Dietary intake, mental status, physical activity, and lifestyle affecting bowel movement frequency and stool texture in young Japanese women

Constipation is a symptom-based disorder, and its definition is mainly subjective. Patients are more concerned with ease of passage and consistency rather than frequency of bowel movement. Studies on bowel movement frequency and stool texture in the general population are sparse, especially in young women. In this cross-sectional study, data obtained from self-administered questionnaires, including age, height, body weight, lifestyle, food habits, anxiety, depressive status, frequency of bowel movements, stool texture, and defecation-related symptoms were analyzed in 245 female Japanese university students. An established semiquantitative questionnaire available for clinical investigation (FFQg) was used to obtain a detailed assessment of food intake and physical activity levels. Of the participants, 21.4% had bowel movements ≤3 times per week and 33.3% had hard or lumpy stools ≥25% and loose (mushy) or watery stools <25% of bowel movements. There was a positive association between infrequent bowel movements and hard or lumpy stools. These two situations both caused similar symptoms such as a sensation of incomplete evacuation and straining. There was no association of bowel movement frequency and stool texture with any specific nutrients and foods, dietary intake, mental status, or physical activity. Several lifestyle factors such as regular bowel movements and hesitation with evacuation were associated with bowel movement frequency and stool texture. Several lifestyle factors, but not mental, physical, or dietary intake factors, were associated with bowel movement frequency and stool texture in young Japanese women

Efficacy of Over-The-Scope Clip Method as a Novel Hemostatic Therapy for Colonic Diverticular Bleeding

Colonic diverticular could bleed recurrently, and, sometimes, fatal massive bleeding could occur. However, the choice of endoscopic hemostasis remains controversial. Although the over-the-scope clip (OTSC) method has been reported to be effective, it has not been fully evaluated due to the small number of cases. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of the OTSC method for colonic diverticular bleeding. Between August 2017 and December 2020, 36 consecutive patients, including those who could not be treated using endoscopic band ligation (EBL) and those in whom re-bleeding had occurred after EBL, underwent the OTSC method for hemostasis of colonic diverticular bleeding at Hyogo Prefectural Awaji Medical Center. The procedure success rate, adverse events rate, early phase re-bleeding rate (within 30 days following primary hemostasis), and the requirement rate for additional transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) or surgery were the outcomes assessed. The outcomes were procedure success rate 100%, adverse events rate 0%, early phase re-bleeding rate 8.3%, and additional TAE or surgery rate 0%. These results suggest that the OTSC method is a safe and effective treatment for managing colonic diverticular bleeding

Vonoprazan-based triple therapy is non-inferior to susceptibility-guided proton pump inhibitor-based triple therapy for Helicobacter pylori eradication

Abstract Background All Helicobacter pylori-infected patients are recommended for eradication with an appropriate regimen in each geographic area. The choice of the therapy is somewhat dependent on the antimicrobial susceptibility. The rate of clarithromycin resistance has been increasing and is associated with failure; thus, susceptibility testing is recommended before triple therapy with clarithromycin. However, antimicrobial susceptibility testing is not yet clinically available and an alternative newly developed acid inhibitor vonoprazan is used for triple therapy in Japan. The aim of this study was to determine whether vonoprazan-based triple therapy is plausible treatment in H. pylori eradication. Methods A retrospective observational study of H. pylori eradication was conducted in a single institute. The patients who requested antimicrobial susceptibility testing were treated with susceptibility-guided proton pump inhibitor-based triple therapy in International University of Health and Welfare Hospital from 2013 to 2016. Other patients were treated with empirical treatment with a proton pump inhibitor. From 2015 to 2016, vonoprazan-based triple treatment (vonoprazan, 20 mg; amoxicillin, 750 mg; and clarithromycin, 200 or 400 mg, b.i.d.) was conducted, and its effectiveness was compared with susceptibility-guided proton pump inhibitor-based triple therapy. We also investigated the improvement in eradication rate when antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed, and compared the outcomes of vonoprazan-based and proton pump inhibitor-based empirical therapy. Results A total of 1355 patients who received first-line eradication treatment were enrolled in the present study. The eradication rates of the empirical proton pump inhibitor-based therapy and the vonoprazan-based therapy group in a per-protocol analysis were 86.3% (95% CI 83.8–88.8) and 97.4% (95% CI 95.7–99.1), respectively. In 212 patients who received antimicrobial susceptibility testing, the rate of clarithromycin resistant was 23.5% and the eradication rate in susceptibility-guided treatment was 95.7% (95% CI 92.9–98.4). The difference between susceptibility-guided and vonoprazan-based therapy was − 1.7% (95% CI − 4.9 to 1.5%), and the non-inferiority of vonoprazan-based triple therapy was confirmed. Conclusions Vonoprazan-based triple therapy was effective as susceptibility-guided triple therapy for H. pylori eradication. An empirical triple therapy with vonoprazan is preferable even in area with high rates of clarithromycin-resistance. Trial registration The study was retrospectively registered in University Hospital Medical Information Network (UMIN000032351