Author: Abhay Panchal

Some clinicians say it’s “confusing” and “ridiculous” to change the name and diagnostic criteria of an established liver disease, while others bemoan the seemingly political reasons why it happened. Yet recently, 236 panelists from 56 countries decided that the terms nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) rely on “exclusionary confounder terms and the use of potentially stigmatizing language.” In a report published June 24 in the Journal of Hepatology, the panelists, members of the NAFLD Nomenclature Consensus Group, determined that steatotic liver disease (SLD) would be used as an “overarching term to encompass the various etiologies of…

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IBS is a symptom-based disorder characterized by recurring bouts of abdominal pain and altered bowel habits. IBS is prevalent, negatively affects quality of life and work productivity, and accounts for billions of dollars in healthcare expenditures. IBS is effectively treated with individualized combinations of medications, diet changes and behavioral interventions. The review is intended to familiarize gastroenterologists with the current generation of DTx that provide virtual behavioral health interventions for patients with IBS.

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A clinical trial is one of the most essential steps in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology research and development process, yet one of the biggest stumbling blocks historically has been finding and retaining patients to participate in studies. The answer to that problem could lie in helping more physicians integrate clinical trials into their private community practices to make it a natural extension of the routine care they provide their patients.

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Burden of NAFLD in the U.S.Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become a rapidly increasing public health burden in the U.S. and elsewhere. NAFLD is a manifestation of systemic metabolic abnormalities, including insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, central obesity, and hypertension. In this short review, we summarize data on the burden of NAFLD in the U.S. and its prognostic determinants and review what clinical and public health approaches may be needed to mitigating its impact.

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Women constitute about half of medical students and internal medicine residents, however, less than 20% of practicing gastroenterologists are female.1-3 This gender disparity arises from a multitude of factors including lack of effective mentoring, unequal leadership and career advancement opportunities, and pay inequity. In this context, The Scrubs & Heels Leadership Summit (S&H) was launched in 2022 focused on the professional and personal development of women in gastroenterology.

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This article focuses on how medical practices are valued by private equity-backed groups, and to an extent, health systems and other strategic acquirers. Only some specialties are candidates for this type of transaction, while others may rely on more traditional physician-to-physician deals (often buying and selling for asset value plus “goodwill”).

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