Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology

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BACKGROUND AND AIM: Treatment options for functional dyspepsia (FD) refractory to pharmacological treatments is limited but the effectiveness of electroacupuncture (EA) is uncertain. We assessed the effectiveness of EA combined with on-demand gastrocaine. METHODS: We conducted a single-centre, assessor-blind, randomized parallel-group 2-arm trial on H. pylori negative FD patients of the postprandial distress syndrome (PDS) subtype refractory to proton pump inhibitor, prokinetics or H2 antagonists...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Anti-H. pylori therapy may lead to the growth of pathogenic or antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the gut. The study aimed to investigate the short-term and long-term impacts of H. pylori eradication with reverse hybrid therapy on the components and macrolide resistance of the gut microbiota. METHODS: H. pylori-related gastritis patients were administered a 14-day reverse hybrid therapy. Fecal samples were collected before treatment and at the end of week 2, week 8, and week 48...

BACKGROUND: Microbial dysbiosis is involved in the development of colorectal cancer and its most common precancerous lesion, colorectal adenoma. Endoscopic resection is one of the procedures for primary prevention of colorectal cancer, yet little is known about how the endoscopic therapy influences gut microbiota. METHODS: We conducted a prospective study of 20 patients who underwent endoscopic resection of colorectal adenoma, and analyzed the fecal microbiota before and 3 months after adenoma resection...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The severity of liver fibrosis is strongly associated with prognosis in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We evaluated clinical risk factors for progression of liver fibrosis in patients with NAFLD. METHODS: This study included 1,562 middle-aged (36-64 years) patients with NAFLD and less severe liver fibrosis (FIB-4 index <1.3). RESULTS: During follow-up, 186 patients progressed to advanced fibrosis (FIB-4 index >2...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Chronic pancreatitis is a risk factor for pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic calcification is a characteristic of chronic pancreatitis; however, its significance for intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN) oncogenesis remains unknown. Therefore, we investigated the relationship between pancreatic calcification and invasive IPMN. METHODS: This study included 157 patients who underwent resection for IPMN between April 2001 and October 2016 (intraductal papillary mucinous adenoma (IPMA), N=76; non-invasive intraductal papillary mucinous carcinoma (IPMC), N=32; invasive IPMC, N=49)...

BACKGROUND: Although argon plasma coagulation (APC) is the current standard endoscopic treatment for chronic radiation proctitis (CRP), radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has emerged as an attractive alternative. AIM: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of RFA for the treatment of CRP. METHODS: Searches of PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases were performed from 2004 through March 2018. Review and data abstraction were performed independently by two authors...

AIM: This study aimed to clarify the long-term effect of Helicobacter pylori eradication on the prevalence of reflux esophagitis (RE). METHODS: We enrolled 8123 individuals (males 5286, females 2837; mean age 54.2±9.3 years) who visited our medical center for an annual checkup between April 2016 and December 2018 and in whom the status of H. pylori infection could be determined. The presence of endoscopically proven RE was determined and compared based on that infection status...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Massive hepatic necrosis (MHN) is a rare but often fatal complication of various liver injuries. Nevertheless, some patients can survive by spontaneous hepatic regeneration. It is known that surviving hepatocytes and/or progenitor cells can participate in this process but the mechanism of hepatic recovery is vague. METHODS: We examined thirteen explanted human livers removed for acute liver failure. Combined immunohistochemistry, digital image analysis and 3D reconstruction of serial sections were applied...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Few studies have evaluated sustained virological response (SVR) rates by direct antivirals (DAAs) and liver stiffness measurement (LSM) changing post-SVR in limited-resource settings. We aimed to describe the effectiveness of DAAs for HCV treatment and to assess the changing of LSM post-SVR METHODS: This retrospective study analyzed data of consecutive HCV-infected patients treated by DAAs from 2015 to 2017 in two tertiary centers in Brazil. SVR rates were reported by intention-to-treat (ITT) and per-protocol analysis...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The NIACE score provides prognostic values for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in European studies. We aim to evaluate the prognostic value of the NIACE score in Asian patients. METHODS: Patients with HCC were retrospectively enrolled from a tertiary medical center in Taiwan during 2009-2014, and their clinical information were collected. The NIACE score was calculated according to the Nodular numbers, tumor Infiltration, Alpha-fetoprotein level, Child-Pugh score, and ECOG score...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The typical histology of H. pylori-uninfected gastric cancer (HpUGC) is signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) localized in the mucosal layer, but the potential of these SRCCs to invade the submucosal layer is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the clinicopathological characteristics of SRCC in H. pylori-uninfected patient and its prevalence in diffuse-type gastric cancer (DGC) within Japan. METHODS: We enrolled consecutive pure DGC patients diagnosed with the disease either localized in the mucosal layer or with submucosal invasion...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Obesity and metabolic syndrome are well-known risk factors for the development of metachronous colorectal neoplasia (CRN). However, data on the risks of metachronous CRN among subgroups according to obesity and metabolic status is scarce. Therefore, we aimed to compare the risk of metachronous CRN among men with different obesity and metabolic status. METHODS: In total, 8059 asymptomatic men who underwent ≥1 adenoma removal between 2010 and 2014 and follow-up colonoscopic surveillance until 2017 were categorized into 4 groups according to obesity and metabolic status: metabolically healthy non-obese (MHNO), metabolically-healthy obese (MHO), metabolically unhealthy non-obese (MUNO), and metabolically unhealthy obese (MUO)...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The nuclear farnesoid X receptor (FXR) regulates critical pathways of hepatic metabolism, inflammation, and gut mucosal barrier. Thus, we investigated the association of FXR-SNPs with hepatic decompensation and liver-related mortality in patients with advanced chronic liver disease (ACLD). METHODS: Two FXR-SNPs (rs56163822 G>T, rs35724 G>C) were genotyped in a cohort of 402 prospectively characterized patients with hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) ≥6mmHg...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Duration of treatment for chronic hepatitis C infection has been shortened since the introduction of highly effective Direct Acting Antivirals (DAA). Presented is our experience in successful treatment of Veterans with chronic hepatitis C infection, with a shorter than currently recommended duration of therapy. METHODS: Retrospective chart review of Veterans with chronic hepatitis C infection, who received more than 1 week and up to 6 weeks (8-42 days) of DAA therapy, with the initiation day between January 1st , 2015 and October 15th , 2018 at Bay Pines Veterans Affairs Healthcare System...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) is the most common adenomatous polyposis syndrome. Patients with FAP are screened for germline mutations of two genes, APC and MUTYH. However, limited data exists on the clinical characterization and genotypic spectrum of FAP in China. This study was aimed to determine APC and MUTYH mutational status in a small cohort of FAP probands in China and to characterize the genotype-phenotype correlation in mutated patients. METHODS: Mutation screening of 46 unrelated probands was performed using multigene panels by next-generation sequencing (NGS)...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Bowel patterns are varied in the general population. Gastrointestinal symptoms are common reasons for clinical visits. We aimed to examine the usual bowel pattern and the prevalence and significance of gastrointestinal symptoms in a population-based cohort of Australian adolescents. METHODS: Seventeen-year-old adolescents (n=1279) in the Western Australian Pregnancy Cohort (Raine) Study participated in a cross-sectional assessment, involving health questionnaires...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: A missense variant of the nucleoside diphosphate-linked moiety X-type motif 15 (NUDT15) gene (R139C) predisposes Asian patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) to thiopurine-induced leukopenia. This study evaluates the long-term effect of NUDT15 R139C heterozygosity on hematological parameters during thiopurine administration. METHODS: We enrolled 83 Japanese IBD patients who were on anti-TNF-α agents and had used thiopurine. NUDT15 R139C was genotyped by PCR...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: SPARC is a matricellular glycoprotein plays a significant role in tumor development. SPARC has been indicated that promotes tumorigenesis, metastasis and poor prognosis in prostate cancer and lung cancer. Therefore, we sought to investigate the molecular mechanisms of SPARC in regulating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS: We used spheroids cultured in serum-free culture medium (SFM) to obtain liver cancer stem cells. Flow cytometric analysis were performed to investigate percentage of CD133+cells in liver cancer cells...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: We previously discovered that Tumor suppressor candidate 3 (TUSC3) was overexpressed and predicted worse prognosis in colon cancer patients. However, the mechanisms of upregulation of TUSC3 in colon cancer remained unclear. METHODS: MiR-873-5p was predicted and identified as the regulator of TUSC3 via online programs and luciferase reporter assays. The roles of miR-873-5p in regulating colon cancer cell proliferation, colony formation and invasion were evaluated in vitro...