Small bowel neuroendocrine tumors: from pathophysiology to clinical approach

Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs), defined as epithelial tumors with predominant neuroendocrine differentiation, are among the most frequent types of small bowel neoplasm. They represent a rare, slow-growing neoplasm with some characteristics common to all forms and others attributable to the organ of origin. The diagnosis of this subgroup of neoplasia is not usually straight-forward for several reasons. Being a rare form of neoplasm they are frequently not readily considered in the differential diagnosis. Also, clinical manifestations are nonspecific lending the clinician no clue that points directly to this entity. However, the annual incidence of NETs has risen in the last years to 40 to 50 cases per million probably not due to a real increase in incidence but rather due to better diagnostic tools that have become progressively available. Being a rare malignancy, investigation regarding its pathophysiology and efforts toward better understanding and classification of these tumors has been limited until recently. Clinical societies dedicated to this matter are emerging (NANETS, ENETS and UKINETS) and several guidelines were published in an effort to standardize the nomenclature, grading and staging systems as well as diagnosis and management of NETs. Also, some investigation on the genetic behavior of small bowel NETs has been recently released, shedding some light on the pathophysiology of these tumors, and pointing some new directions on the possible treating options. In this review we focus on the current status of the overall knowledge about small bowel NETs, focusing on recent breakthroughs and its potential application on clinical practice.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Oesophageal presentation of Crohn's disease

Crohn's disease (CD) is characterised by a transmural inflammatory process, which can affect any part of the digestive tract; however, CD with oesophageal presentation is rare. We report a case of a previously healthy young woman with symptoms of dysphagia, odynophagia, chest pain and weight loss, who presented oesophageal ulcers at upper endoscopy and whose histology revealed granulomatous oesophagitis. After complementary study, a mild ileocaecal involvement of CD was demonstrated. The patient became asymptomatic with proton pump inhibitor and a course of prednisolone. Mucosal healing was obtained after maintenance therapy with azathioprine. In the absence of extraoesophageal symptoms, oesophageal CD may be overlooked. CD must always be considered as differential diagnosis in the presence of oesophageal ulcers.(undefined)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Inibidores da bomba de protões: serão eles uma ameaça à segurança do doente?

Proton pump inhibitors are among the most frequently prescribed drugs in the world and are generally considered safe. However, there is growing concern regarding their safety.Background: Proton pump inhibitors are among the most frequently prescribed drugs in the world and are generally considered safe. However, there is growing concern regarding their safety. Summary: A nonsystematic review of the current literature was performed regarding proton pump inhibitors and their adverse effects. Proton pump inhibitors seem to be associated with fundic gland polyp development (without clinical relevance) and Clostridium difficile infection. Also, in cirrhotic patients, their prescription should be carefully reviewed. Regarding their association with other enteric infections, micronutrient deficiency, dementia, and chronic kidney disease, current evidence is still of low quality, and further studies are needed. Key Messages: Considering the current evidence, most patients with a clear clinical indication for proton pump inhibitor treatment should probably benefit from the maintenance of their treatment without significant adverse effects. However, higher-quality studies are needed to confirm or dismiss most of the proposed adverse effects.Introdução: Os inibidores da bomba de protões estão entre dos fármacos mais utilizados a nível mundial e globalmente considerados seguros. Contudo, evidência recente tem levantado dúvidas sobre o seu perfil de segurança. Sumário: Efetuada uma revisão não-sistemática da literatura relativamente aos inibidores da bomba de protões e seus efeitos adversos. Os inibidores da bomba de protões parecem associar-se significativamente com o desenvolvimento de pólipos das glândulas fûndicas (sem significado clínico) e com a infeção por Clostridium difficile. Além disso, em doentes cirróticos a sua prescrição deve ser cuidadosamente revista. A sua associação com outras infeções entéricas, défice de micronutrientes, demência e doença renal crónica provêm de evidência de baixa qualidade e mais estudos são necessários. Mensagens chave: Tendo em conta a evidência atual, a maioria dos doentes com indicação para terapêutica com inibidores da bomba de protões podem beneficar da sua manutenção sem efeitos adversos significativos. Contudo, estudos de melhor qualidade são necessários para confirmar ou desmentir a maioria dos efeitos secundários propostos.(undefined

Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography for suspected choledocholithiasis : from guidelines to clinical practice

Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography for suspected choledocholithiasis: From guidelines to clinical practice.AIM To study the practical applicability of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy guidelines in suspected cases of choledocholithiasis. METHODS This was a retrospective single center study, covering a 4-year period, from January 2010 to December 2013. All patients who underwent endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for suspected choledocholithiasis were included. Based on the presence or absence of predictors of choledocholithiasis (clinical ascending cholangitis, common bile duct (CBD) stones on ultrasonography (US), total bilirubin > 4 mg/dL, dilated CBD on US, total bilirubin 1.8-4 mg/dL, abnormal liver function test, age > 55 years and gallstone pancreatitis), patients were stratified in low, intermediate or high risk for choledocholithiasis. For each predictor and risk group we used the ?(2) to evaluate the statistical associations with the presence of choledocolithiasis at ERCP. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 21.0. A P value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS A total of 268 ERCPs were performed for suspected choledocholithiasis. Except for gallstone pancreatitis (P = 0.063), all other predictors of choledocholitiasis (clinical ascending cholangitis, P = 0.001; CBD stones on US, P = 0.001; total bilirubin > 4 mg/dL, P = 0.035; total bilirubin 1.8-4 mg/dL, P = 0.001; dilated CBD on US, P = 0.001; abnormal liver function test, P = 0.012; age > 55 years, P = 0.002) showed a statistically significant association with the presence of choledocholithiasis at ERCP. Approximately four fifths of patients in the high risk group (79.8%, 154/193 patients) had confirmed choledocholithiasis on ERCP, vs 34.2% (25/73 patients) and 0 (0/2 patients) in the intermediate and low risk groups, respectively. The definition of "high risk group" had a sensitivity of 86%, positive predictive value 79.8% and specificity 56.2% for the presence of choledocholithiasis at ERCP. CONCLUSION The guidelines should be considered to optimize patients' selection for ERCP. For high risk patients specificity is still low, meaning that some patients perform ERCP unnecessarily

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding risk scores: who, when and why?

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) remains a significant cause of hospital admission. In order to stratify patients according to the risk of the complications, such as rebleeding or death, and to predict the need of clinical intervention, several risk scores have been proposed and their use consistently recommended by international guidelines. The use of risk scoring systems in early assessment of patients suffering from UGIB may be useful to distinguish high-risks patients, who may need clinical intervention and hospitalization, from low risk patients with a lower chance of developing complications, in which management as outpatients can be considered. Although several scores have been published and validated for predicting different outcomes, the most frequently cited ones are the Rockall score and the Glasgow Blatchford score (GBS). While Rockall score, which incorporates clinical and endoscopic variables, has been validated to predict mortality, the GBS, which is based on clinical and laboratorial parameters, has been studied to predict the need of clinical intervention. Despite the advantages previously reported, their use in clinical decisions is still limited. This review describes the different risk scores used in the UGIB setting, highlights the most important research, explains why and when their use may be helpful, reflects on the problems that remain unresolved and guides future research with practical impact.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Strangulated Spiegel's hernia mimicking ischaemic colitis: endoscopic diagnosis of a rare surgical emergency

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Esophagogastroduodenoscopy findings in patients on the waiting list for bariatric surgery

Background: Bariatric surgery (BS) is one of the most effective approaches to weight loss. Performing esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) prior to BS is controversial but allows the detection and treatment of mucosal lesions that may affect surgical decision and type of surgery. Aim: The aim of this study was to identify the frequency of gastric lesions and Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection in a group of asymptomatic patients on the waiting list for BS. Methods: This is a retrospective descriptive study including patients undergoing EGD before BS. Results: A total of 360 patients were included with a mean age of 42.1 ± 10.8 years, 319 (88.6%) were females, with a mean body mass index of 42.8 ± 5.44 kg/m2. Regarding endoscopic findings, 25.6% presented no endoscopic lesions, 61.6% presented hyperemic gastropathy, 11.4% erosive gastropathy, 1.1% gastric polyp, and 0.3% gastric ulcer. Histologically, no changes were observed in 20.8% of the patients, 239 (66.4%) presented with superficial gastritis, 11.7% (n = 42) had chronic atrophic gastritis and intestinal metaplasia (n = 34 in the antrum, n = 1 in the body, and n = 7 in both the antrum and the body), and 1.7% (n = 6) had low-grade dysplasia. Hp was positive in 251 (69.7%) patients. We found that patients with metaplasia or dysplasia were more frequently submitted to surgical techniques that did not exclude the stomach (55.8 vs. 16.4%, p < 0.001). Conclusion: EGD with histological analysis plays an important role in the pre-surgical evaluation in BS, with a high rate of pathological findings in asymptomatic patients. These findings may have an impact on the long-term management and outcomes of these patients.(undefined

Primary colon mantle lymphoma: a misleading macroscopic appearance!

Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) of the colon is a rare entity, usually presenting as lymphomatous polyposis. We report the case of a 43-year-old male with an unusual colonic MCL in the form of a single exophytic and ulcerous lesion with necrotic areas associated with an ileo-cecal intussusception. The endoscopic appearance suggested adenocarcinoma. However, the diagnosis was made by histology and immunohistochemistry studies of the endoscopic biopsies

Aquaponics: the ugly duckling in european organic regulation

Aquaponics is an integrated closed-loop multi-trophic food production system that combines elements of a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) and hydroponics (Endut et al., 2010; Goddek et al., 2015; Graber and Junge, 2009). Organic agriculture has in principle the same approach defined by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM, September 2005) "Organic Agriculture is a production system that sustains the health of soils, ecosystems and people. It relies on ecological processes, biodiversity and cycles adapted to local conditions, rather than the use of inputs with adverse effects. Organic Agriculture combines tradition, innovation and science to benefit the shared environment and promote fair relationships and a good quality of life for all involved."N/

Common variable immunodeficiency-associated inflammatory enteropathy: the new era of biological therapy

Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is the most frequent form of immunodeficiency in adults. Clinical manifestations are heterogeneous with an increased susceptibility to infections and inflammatory conditions, namely autoimmune diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease. We present the clinical case of a Caucasian female patient, 21 years old, with a past medical history of CVID, with multiple visits to the emergency department due to abdominal pain in the lower quadrants and diarrhea. Her biochemical analysis showed elevated inflammatory parameters. Stool cultures and parasitological examination of feces were negative. Ileocolonoscopy revealed lymphoid nodular hyperplasia of the terminal ileum, and the small bowel capsule endoscopy demonstrated edema and multiple pleomorphic ulcers (Lewis score = 1,104). CVID-associated inflammatory enteropathy was suspected. Budesonide 9 mg/day was started, but no positive clinical response was observed. It was decided to initiate biological therapy with infliximab. The patient's condition is currently clinically improved with no complications due to biological therapy.(undefined