92 Articles with the topic: Gastroenterology & Hepatology


New genetic markers for ulcerative colitis identified
piggy submitted, created time 3 days 20 hours (www.eurekalert.org)
An international team led by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers has identified genetic markers associated with risk for ulcerative colitis. The findings, which appear today as an advance online publication of the journal Nature Genetics, bring researchers closer to understanding the biological pathways involved in the disease and may lead to the development of new treatments that specifically target them.
Ulcerative colitis is a chronic, relapsing disorder that causes inflammation and ulceration in the inner lining of the rectum and large intestine 


Antioxidants Offer Pain Relief in Patients with Chronic Pancreatitis
sea-maid submitted, created time 5 days 6 hours (www.docguide.com)
Antioxidant supplementation was found to be effective in relieving pain and reducing levels of oxidative stress in patients with chronic pancreatitis (CP), according to a study published in the January issue of the journal Gastroenterology. 


Is bismuth a safe medicine for the treatment of peptic ulcer disease?
sea-maid submitted, created time 1 week 1 day (www.eurekalert.org)
Bismuth compounds have been used for centuries in medicine. The discovery of H. pylori in 1983 led to renewed interest in bismuth compounds, because these were found to successfully treat the infection in combination with antibiotics. However, in the 1970s bismuth salts, used at high doses for prolonged periods, were found to lead to neurotoxicity. However, there has been no summary of evidence for the toxicity of bismuth when used for short periods as part of H. pylori eradication therapy and some researchers think it might have applications in treating ulcers. 


Amish provide clues to genetics of heart disease
piggy submitted, created time 3 weeks 6 days (sciencenow.sciencemag.org)
Downing eight-hundred-calorie milkshakes is a great way to make the fat levels in your blood skyrocket. But a small proportion of Amish in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, are not so easily affected, researchers have found. These lucky few harbor a genetic mutation that keeps their levels of fat particles called triglycerides in check and possibly protects them from heart disease. Although their particular mutation doesn't show up very often in the general population, the gene itself could play an important role in heart disease 


Extended Drug Therapy for Hepatitis Is Challenged
sea-maid submitted, created time 1 month 3 days (www.theledger.com)
Patients who do not initially respond to standard drug therapy for treatment of hepatitis C are unlikely to respond to long-term maintenance therapy as well, according to a new study. 


Antibiotics Largest Cause of Drug-Induced Liver Damage
sea-maid submitted, created time 1 month 5 days (health.msn.com)
MONDAY, Dec. 1 (HealthDay News) -- Antibiotics are the single largest class of drugs that cause idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury (DILI), researchers say.
The condition accounts for about thirteen percent of cases of acute liver failure in the United States and is the most common cause of death from acute liver failure.
DILI is caused by a wide range of prescription and nonprescription medications, nutritional supplements and herbal products 


Long-Term Antibiotic Use Affects "Good" Gut Bacteria
sea-maid submitted, created time 1 month 2 weeks (health.yahoo.com)
Antibiotic treatment, especially when prolonged or repeated, may have a negative impact on beneficial bacteria that live in the gut, according to a new study.
Gut bacteria play helpful roles in various aspects of human nutrition, metabolism and immune responses, experts note.
Researchers focused on the widely-used antibiotic ciprofloxacin, prescribed for a number of bacteria-caused conditions, including urinary tract infections. It has been believed that ciprofloxacin causes only modest harm to beneficial bacteria in the body.
In this study, Stanford University's Dr 


Stem Cells with Potential to Regenerate Injured Liver Tissue Identified
sea-maid submitted, created time 1 month 3 weeks (www.sciencedaily.com)
A novel protein marker has been found that identifies rare adult liver stem cells, whose ability to regenerate injured liver tissue has the potential for cell-replacement therapy. For the first time, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine led by Linda Greenbaum, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology, have demonstrated that cells expressing the marker can differentiate into both liver cells and cells that line the bile duct.
This discovery could have serious implication for transplants and regenerative medicine 


Bariatric surgery hangs up its scalpel
Darkfrog submitted, created time 2 months 2 weeks (www.nytimes.com)
In serious cases of obsity, patients sometimes opt for bariatric surgery--modifications to the stomach. This may include staples or cinchers, but the effect is that the stomach is shrunk so that the patient feels full after eating only a little. The surgical techniques involved have become more precise over the years, and many bariatric surgeries have been performed through only a tiny slit in the patient's abdominal wall 


New Pathway for Malaria Infection Discovered
sea-maid submitted, created time 3 months 3 weeks (www.sciencedaily.com)
Cenix BioScience GmbH, a leading specialist in advanced RNA interference (RNAi)-based research services, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALNY), a leading RNAi therapeutics company, and the Lisbon-based biomedical research centre Instituto de Medicina Molecular (IMM), have announced the publication of their collaborative study in Cell Host & Microbe, describing the discovery and in vivo validation of scavenger receptor BI (SR-BI), a major regulator of cholesterol uptake by the liver, as a critical host factor for malaria infection. 


Study shows cost savings behind bariatric surgery
jerry submitted, created time 3 months 4 weeks (money.cnn.com)
Insurance companies do usually cover the costs of bariatric surgery, they would start now: A new study shows that, among morbidly obese patients, having a stomach stapling or an intestinal modification causes them to shed insurance claims as well as pounds.
The study looked at the insurance claims of 7200 morbidly obese patients, half of whom had had the surgery and half of whom had not 


sea-maid submitted, created time 4 months 4 weeks (sciencenow.sciencemag.org)
Humans have been trying to outrun old age for millennia, and new research might give us a step on the Grim Reaper. Scientists have prevented age-related liver decline in mice by restoring a key protein that helps the organ trash used proteins. It's not exactly the fountain of youth, but the findings could shed further light on the biological mechanisms of aging..... 


Five Factors Predict Success in Gastric Banding Procedure
kavin submitted, created time 6 months 1 week (www.medscape.com)
June 19, 2008 (Washington, DC) — A nationwide survey in France has found five factors that are significantly associated with successful weight loss after gastric banding. The study was part of a survey of medical and surgical practices conducted by the French National Medical Insurance Service and presented here at the American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery 25th Annual Meeting. "Success" was defined as the loss of more than 50% of excess body weight. 


The advent of capsule endoscopy--a not-so-futuristic approach to obscure gastrointestinal bleeding
kavin submitted, created time 6 months 1 week (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
Capsule endoscopy is a new, wireless, endoscopic examination of the small intestine. To date, two small clinical trials have been reported utilizing capsule endoscopy in patients with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding, and have shown its superiority to push enteroscopy in diagnosing the cause of blood loss. No outcome studies have been reported. This paper proposes a change in practice guidelines for obscure bleeding 


Higher coffee consumption associated with lower liver cancer risk
kavin submitted, created time 6 months 1 week (esciencenews.com)
A new large, prospective population-based study confirms an inverse relationship between coffee consumption and liver cancer risk. The study also found that higher levels of gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) in the blood were associated with an increased risk of developing the disease. These findings are published in the July issue of Hepatology, a journal published by John Wiley & Sons on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). The article and an accompanying editorial are also available online at Wiley Interscience (www.interscience.wiley.com) 