AGA, AASLD, ACG, ASCRS, ASGE, SAGES and SGNA are committed to initiatives focused on eliminating health care-associated infections through improved education about evidence-based practices. While our societies appreciated the opportunity to engage in the discussion around the 2021 revision of ST91 Flexible and semi-rigid endoscope processing in health care facilities, the joint GI societies remain concerned and do not support some of the finalized revisions to the standards and therefore voted negative on vote for approval.
Author: Praveen Suthrum
Borescopes — inspection cameras that can fit inside an endoscope to look for damages — are a recent technological advancement used at endoscope repair facilities to detect problems within the scopes’ channels. Considerable time and training, however, are needed to teach technicians to proficiently interpret borescope video feeds and the damages they document. Many reprocessing guidelines include visual endoscope inspection but identifying and rating the degree of damage can vary by observer.
Chronic liver disease is a mounting problem worldwide, and one that is greatly compounded when combined with other precipitating events (eg, alcohol-related or viral hepatitis, drug-induced liver injury), which is termed acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). Although ACLF has been described only relatively recently, it represents a significant contributor to mortality. The American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) convened a team of experts with the goal of helping clinicians recognize and appropriately manage ACLF. This resulted in practice guidelines recently published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology.
A 50-year-old male patient presented to an outpatient clinic in the spring of 2020 with fever and dyspnea; he told clinicians that the symptoms had persisted for the past 3 days. Physical examination findings included a fever of 37.8°C (100°F), respiratory rate of 24 breaths/min, and heart rate of 105 beats/min. There was no organomegaly, and the patient was a non-smoker. Initial laboratory test findings included: White blood cell count: 6.4 × 109/LC-reactive protein (CRP): 4.6 mg/LFerritin: 162 ng/mLD-dimer: 842 ng/mL
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a type of intelligence that comes from machines or computer systems that mimics human cognitive function. Recently, AI has been utilized in medicine and helped clinicians make clinical decisions. In gastroenterology, AI has assisted colon polyp detection, optical biopsy, and diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection. AI also has a broad role in the clinical prediction and management of gastrointestinal bleeding. Machine learning can determine the clinical risk of upper and lower gastrointestinal bleeding. AI can assist the management of gastrointestinal bleeding by identifying high-risk patients who might need urgent endoscopic treatment or blood transfusion, determining bleeding…
The healthcare technology industry is constantly evolving due to new innovations in the medical space. From MRI scans and X-rays to robotic surgeries and virtual reality, the healthcare sector is seeing massive digital transformation. As per a study, the US healthcare spending is estimated to touch $8.3 trillion by 2040 from $4 trillion in 2020 due to the adoption of new and emerging health technologies.
In patients with inflammatory bowel disease, colonoscopy within 3 years before colorectal cancer diagnosis was linked with early tumor stage detection, while colonoscopy within 1 year reduced overall all-cause mortality, according to data. “Current U.S. and European Gastrointestinal society practice guidelines recommend colonoscopy for CRC surveillance in IBD patients at recurring periods ranging from 1 to 3 years. Approximately one-quarter of IBD patients in clinical practice receive guideline recommended colonoscopy surveillance,” Hyun-seok Kim, MD, MPH, of Baylor College of Medicine, and colleagues wrote in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
A gastroenterologist in Central Islip, N.Y., pleaded guilty March 7 to billing Medicare for millions of dollars for medical procedures that weren’t performed, according to the Justice Department. Three details: 1. Morris Barnard, MD, pleaded guilty to submitting more than $3 million in bills to Medicare for colonoscopy and gastroenterological procedures that were never performed.
Background To evaluate whether the risk of metachronous high-risk colorectal neoplasm (HR-CRN) differs according to the indication for surveillance colonoscopy. Methods Patients who underwent polypectomy or endoscopic resection of colorectal neoplasms were enrolled and classified into three groups according to the indication for surveillance colonoscopy: advanced colorectal neoplasm (ACRN: adenoma ≥ 10 mm, adenoma with high-degree dysplasia and/or villous component), advanced serrated polyps (ASP: hyperplastic polyp or sessile serrated lesion ≥ 10 mm, traditional serrated polyp), and high-risk polyps (HRP: 3 or more adenomas or serrated polyps). The primary outcome was the development of metachronous HR-CRN, defined as ACRN, ASP, or HRP at the first follow-up…
In honor of National Colorectal Cancer (CRC) Awareness Month, we’re providing you with the top three articles to read from the March CRC-themed issue of Gastroenterology. AGA guidance: use of noninvasive CRC screening options The new AGA Clinical Practice Update on Approach to the Use of the Noninvasive Colorectal Cancer Screening Options: Commentary offers advice regarding the use and effectiveness of noninvasive CRC screening tests, including appropriate patient selection guided by colorectal cancer risk. The Clinical Practice Update also provides key concepts for establishment of a high-quality CRC screening program.