An amino-acid based diet may help provide relief for patients with eosinophilic gastritis or gastroenteritis (EoG/EoGE), a small prospective study found. All 15 participants experienced a complete histologic remission in both the stomach (from 50 to 11 eosinophils per high-power microscopic field of gastric or duodenal biopsy sample [eos/hpf], P<0.001) and in the duodenum (from 49 to 16 eos/hpf, P=0.001) following 6 weeks of the amino acid-based, nutritionally complete elemental formula (ELE) diet, reported researchers led by Nirmala Gonsalves, MD, of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.
Author: Abhay Panchal
Eligible patients may increasingly prefer an annual fecal immunochemical test (FIT) or fecal occult blood test (FOBT) over a colonoscopy, according to new data.1 In findings from the colorectal cancer screening CONFIRM trial, investigators reported that preference for lesser invasive screening methods has been popularizing among a population of US veterans recruited into the US-based assessment—and that FIT or FOBT have already surpassed colonoscopies as the most popular method of colorectal cancer screening in some regions.
Even though nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is the most common form of chronic liver disease in the United States, there are unfortunately no FDA-approved medications for this condition. That’s why Dr. Peter Buch speaks with Dr. Sidney Barritt about top treatment strategies for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in part one of this two-episode series. Dr. Barritt is an Associate Professor of Medicine and the Director of Hepatology at the UNC Liver Center at the University of North Carolina.
Surgeons at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis said they recently completed the first robotic liver transplant in the U.S. The team successfully performed the transplant in May utilizing minimally invasive robotic surgery at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. According to the university’s website, the smaller incision results in less pain and faster recoveries. Meanwhile, the precision capabilities of surgical robotics enabled the team to perform “one of the most challenging abdominal procedures.”
In this episode, we revisit a conversation with Jonathan Ng, CEO and Founder of Iterative Scopes, from Season 1. Iterative Scopes is a company pioneering the application of artificial intelligence-based precision medicine to gastroenterology with the aim of establishing a new standard of care for the detection and treatment of gastrointestinal diseases. Dr. Ng discusses why healthcare entrepreneurship is so often a winding path, how scepticism can be an asset for a founder, and why raising large amounts of money is often a double-edged sword for start-up teams.
Engineers at MIT say they developed a new technology that can control neural circuits connecting the gut and the brain. Using fibers embedded with sensors, plus light sources for optogenetic stimulation, the researchers demonstrated this control in mice. The study showed that they could induce feelings of fullness or reward-seeking behavior by manipulating cells of the intestine. This could lead to the exploration of the correlations between digestive health and neurological conditions like autism and Parkinson’s disease.
Three California nurse practitioners with doctorates (DNP) have sued the state over its law that only physicians can call themselves doctors, saying it violates their first amendment right to use the honorific title without fear of regulatory repercussions. The case highlights ongoing scope-creep battles as the American Medical Association tries to preserve the physician-led team model and nursing organizations and some lawmakers push for greater autonomy for allied professionals.
A Bethany, Okla., resident is suing Oklahoma City-based Integris Health, alleging that the system allowed third parties to take personal patient healthcare information for advertising purposes, according to a July 14 report from The Oklahoman. The class-action suit filed this week claims companies including Meta, Google, Microsoft and Reddit gained personal information from patients who used Integris’ website to learn about physicians, services, health conditions and treatment options.
The impact of dietary factors on GERD symptoms can vary among individuals. While there are general dietary recommendations that can be beneficial for many people with GERD, each person may have unique trigger foods and tolerances. Some foods commonly associated with triggering GERD symptoms include fatty or fried foods, spicy foods, citrus fruits, tomatoes, onions, garlic, chocolate, caffeine, mint and alcohol. Individuals may have varying sensitivities to these foods.
A groundbreaking study led by the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation published today in Gastroenterology estimates the incidence, prevalence, and racial-ethnic distribution of physician-diagnosed IBD in the United States, using comprehensive health insurance claims data. The study, conducted by principal investigators at the Foundation, the University of Pennsylvania, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Carelon Research, finds that IBD is diagnosed in more than 0.7% of Americans, with 721 cases per 100,000 people, or nearly 1 in 100.