In my more than 30-year career as a registered dietitian in gastroenterology, it has been exciting to see the role of dietitians in gastrointestinal conditions become validated and expanded upon, most markedly over the past 10 years. As credentialed food and nutrition experts, dietitians play a powerful role in the care of GI patients. This makes sense — food first meets our body via the GI tract and is essential for life. Adequate, well-balanced nutrition is vital to our well-being, gut function and gut microbiota, and also improves health outcomes and GI symptom management.
Author: Rutali Thakur
TOPLINE: The predictive value of the multitarget stool DNA (mt-sDNA) test is unaffected by the presence of known colorectal cancer (CRC) risk factors, suggesting it could be used in patients at increased risk for CRC. METHODOLOGY:
DALLAS, July 11, 2023 /PRNewswire/ –A GI Alliance, the nation’s premier gastroenterology management organization, is expanding its Connecticut footprint through a partnership with Coastal Digestive Care Center. This partnership is a joint venture with four Connecticut Gastroenterology (CTGI) physician owners. These physicians and their CTGI colleagues will continue to provide care at this location. The GI-focused ambulatory surgery center “ASC” includes 2 endoscopy suites and is the first ASC partnership for GI Alliance in Connecticut. GI Alliance partnered with CTGI in January of 2023, the largest independent gastroenterology practice in the state.
The American Antitrust Institute (AAI), in collaboration with the University of California at Berkeley (UCB) Petris Center on Health Care Markets and Consumer Welfare, and the Washington Center for Equitable Growth (Equitable Growth), announced the release of a new report on private equity ownership in healthcare. The report, Monetizing Medicine: Private Equity and Competition in Physician Practice Markets, highlights private equity’s voracious acquisition of physician practices over the last several years. The analysis evaluates market penetration across 10 physician practice specialties within markets across the U.S., the impact on market shares and concentration, and on prices and expenditures.
The first half of 2023 has already seen landmark FDA decisions in the gastroenterology space, including multiple first-in-class therapies along with two costly rejections that highlight persistent gaps in the GI drug armory. Since April, the agency has approved several firsts in the GI field, including the first drug to treat functional constipation in children, the first oral microbiota biotherapeutic for recurrent C. difficile and the first oral product to treat moderately to severely active Crohn’s disease.
A recent Goldman Sachs report determined that artificial intelligence (AI) may wipe out 300 million jobs. Jobs that require advanced education, like mine, are particularly vulnerable. This isn’t welcome news for those of us who have invested a lifetime mastering our crafts and must work for a living. Until recently, the primary goal of medical students has been to master the science of medicine. Students spend thousands of hours learning anatomy, biochemistry, histology, pathology, pharmacology, physiology, and much more. That knowledge is essential for the effective practice of medicine.
Conducting staging laparoscopy on patients who have recently been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer helps with the early detection of cancer spread and determination of the cancer’s stage, according to a June 29 news release from Mayo Clinic. Mayo Clinic conducted a five-year study that observed just over 1,000 patients with pancreatic cancer who underwent staging laparoscopy. The research found that the procedure helped detect cancer spread in the liver or lining of the abdomen in 1 of 5 patients.
Here are five numbers that may be troubling gastroenterologists. This information comes from Medscape’s “Gastroenterologist Lifestyle, Happiness & Burnout Report 2023” and “Gastroenterologist Compensation Report 2023.” 36 percent: The percentage of gastroenterologists who said they are burned out.
The article discusses the psychological barriers that contribute to low rates of colorectal cancer (CRC) screening. Many Americans, over 40%, are skipping standard CRC screening due to negative emotional associations with the disease and the tests involved. Fear, embarrassment, and disgust associated with CRC and its screening tests lead to denial and defensiveness, causing individuals to put off screening and hope for the best. Although there are various screening options available, such as colonoscopy, stool-based tests, and direct visualization tests, the overall CRC screening rates remain below the target percentage. Practical challenges, like the invasiveness and time commitment of colonoscopy,…