An overview of treatment outcomes for patients with Crohn’s disease showed no discernable patterns in clinical remission and response has emerged in recent years.1 A team, led by Fernando Magro, Department of Gastroenterology, São João University Hospital Center, identified time trends in clinical response and clinical remission rates for patients with Crohn’s disease treated with biologics. BiologicsIn recent years there has been a flux of biologics to garner approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), for either Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis. “Over the last decade, the number of biological agents with alternative mechanisms of action has gradually…
Author: Praveen Suthrum
PALO ALTO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Guardant Health, Inc. (Nasdaq: GH), a leading precision oncology company, has announced support for an investigator initiated study led and conducted by The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) to evaluate patient compliance with a blood-based test for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening. In this study, The Ohio State University Guardant Shield Colorectal Cancer Screening Project, individuals from minority and underserved populations aged 45 and older who are in need of CRC screening will have the option to receive the Shield blood test,…
In the decades leading up to the Covid-19 pandemic, acquisitions of hospitals and health systems by private equity firms soared, sparking debate about how the growing influence of PE in U.S. health care would affect costs, quality, and access. Supporters of PE cite its established track record of creating value for companies and investors across a variety of industries by improving operations, promoting an innovative culture, providing access to capital to support infrastructure improvements like IT systems and new facilities, leveraging economies of scale, and adopting managerial best practices. Critics point out the downsides of PE’s focus on maximizing returns…
CHARLOTTE, N.C.—Endoscopic management of necrotizing pancreatitis alone or with percutaneous drainage of symptomatic pancreatic fluid collections has multiple advantages over surgery or percutaneous drainage alone, with no increase in complications, according to a recent study. “The main findings in terms of outcomes favored the endoscopy group: significantly shorter hospital stay, significantly less risk of needing transfer to the intensive care unit and significantly lower 90-day mortality rate,” said investigator Vibhu Chittajallu, MD, a second-year gastroenterology fellow at Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center. To compare endoscopic drainage and/or radiologically guided percutaneous drainage and surgical approaches in…
Physicians are admired for their sacrifice and dedication. Yet beneath the surface lies a painful, quiet reality: Physicians may take their lives more than any other professional, reported at 40 per 100,000. That stat was presented at the 2018 American Psychiatric Association meeting and has been widely debated. A Missouri State Medical Associate study found that nearly one doctor dies by suicide every day. The Physicians Foundation says that 55% of physicians know a doctor who considered, attempted, or died by suicide. Doctor’s Burden: Medscape Physician Suicide Report 2023 asked over 9000 doctors if they had suicidal thoughts. Nine percent…
March 17, 2023 – The GI Quality Improvement Consortium, Inc. (GIQuIC), a joint collaboration of the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) and American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE), has launched a partnership with data and analytics technology company Health Catalyst to reduce data entry burden and simplify registry data management for GIQuIC’s national clinical registry. According to the press release, GIQuiC offers the only national gastroenterology-focused clinical registry in the country. Through the new partnership, the organization will leverage ARMUS, part of Health Catalyst’s HYBRID Clinical Registry and Reporting solution, to streamline user experience, enhance data extraction and capture, and…
This document represents the official recommendations of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) and was developed by the AGA Clinical Guideline Committee and approved by the AGA Governing Board. Development of this guideline was fully funded by the AGA Institute with no additional outside funding. Obesity is a global pandemic, affecting about 40% of adults in the United States. There is a vast area of unmet need with respect to weight-loss interventions, as only 1.1% of eligible patients with obesity are receiving primary bariatric surgery. Endoscopic bariatric therapies have evolved as an attractive tool for weight loss; however, <5% of patients…
Gastroenterologists are no strangers to reimbursement difficulties, but as new procedures arise so do coverage disputes. Vivek Kaul, MD, Segal-Watson professor of medicine in the gastroenterology and hepatology division at the University of Rochester (N.Y.) Medical Center, recently connected with Becker’s to discuss the biggest challenge gastroenterologists face regarding reimbursement rates for GI procedures.
The 13th annual AGA Tech Summit took place in San Francisco, California last week, bringing together GI entrepreneurs, clinicians, medical technology companies, venture capitalists and regulatory agencies working to improve patient care in the field. A highlight of the event is the annual Shark Tank competition, where forward-thinking companies showcase and pitch their innovations to a panel of expert judges. From devices providing rapid cancer detection to technology that makes endoscopy safer, the five companies selected for the 2023 AGA Shark Tank represented a glimpse of the future of GI patient care. View short video pitches from all of the…
Recent studies have suggested that circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) testing has prognostic value in colorectal cancer, but researchers maintain that additional studies are needed to confirm whether and how ctDNA testing should be used in practice. A study published in Nature Medicine showed that ctDNA testing can identify patients with colorectal cancer who are at high risk of relapse after surgery and can benefit from adjuvant chemotherapy.