Hepatology News and Research

RSS

Hepatology is the branch of medicine that incorporates study of liver, gallbladder, biliary tree and pancreas as well as management of their disorders.

DISCUSS survey findings highlight need to prioritize GERD dialogue

According to findings from the new nationwide DISCUSS Survey, many people surveyed report that their gastroesophageal reflux disease and/or persistent heartburn symptoms significantly disrupt their lives.

24 Mar 2011

Researchers discover novel gene regulation mechanism that contributes to HCC development

Researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center and VCU Institute of Molecular Medicine have discovered a novel mechanism in gene regulation that contributes to the development of a form of liver cancer called hepatocellular carcinoma.

23 Mar 2011

Cognitive impairment may not be fully reversible in patients with liver disease: Study

There are potential legal ramifications for physicians of patients who drive with cognitive impairment, according to a study in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association Institute.

19 Mar 2011

Study: Dried plums more safe, effective than psyllium to treat constipation

Given their palatability, tolerability and availability, dried plums should be considered the initial approach to the management of mild to moderate constipation in the general population, according to results of a randomized clinical trial recently published in Alimentary Pharmacology and Therapeutics.

16 Mar 2011

Conservative approach with endoscopic techniques can resolve colonic perforation

Colonoscopy is considered a safe procedure, although complications can occur. The most dreaded of these is iatrogenic perforation. The literature reports perforation rates of 0.03%-0.8% for diagnostic procedures, and a rate of 0.15%-3% for therapeutic procedures.

16 Mar 2011

Research: Underweight HCV-infected patients tend to be older at HCC onset

The incidence and mortality associated with hepatocellular carcinoma have been increasing worldwide, and hepatitis C virus infection plays an important role in the pathogenesis of HCC.

16 Mar 2011

Prophylactic PEG placement prior to HNC therapy associated with high rate of non use

Impairment of oral intake occurs in the majority of patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) receiving chemoradiotherapy. Placement of prophylactic percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube in asymptomatic newly diagnosed HNC before chemoradiation is a common practice in some centers. In some studies, PEG has been associated with a decrease in treatment related weight loss in patients with HNC, but no studies have examined the utilization rate.

16 Mar 2011

Hydro-stomach CT imaging is not a reliable tool for EGC detection: Study

Traditionally, both air and tap water have been used as oral contrast agents to achieve adequate gastric distension for preoperative computed tomography imaging in patients with early gastric cancer.

16 Mar 2011

Study underscores need for monitoring vitamin D levels in all cirrhosis patients

Vitamin D deficiency is a well reported complication in chronic cholestatic liver disease such as primary biliary cirrhosis. While the prevalence and treatment of this deficiency has been addressed in many articles over the last decades, little is known of the vitamin D status in alcoholic liver cirrhosis.

16 Mar 2011

iTherX commences ITX-5061 Phase 1b study in patients with HCV

iTherX, a pharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing a new class of therapies for hepatitis C, today announced that it has commenced patient recruitment in an open-label, proof-of-concept Phase 1b study of its lead compound ITX-5061 in liver transplant patients with hepatitis C virus infection.

16 Mar 2011

Repligen reports positive results from RG1068 Phase 3 study to improve MRI of the pancreas

Repligen Corporation reported today positive top-line results from a Phase 3 study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of RG1068, synthetic human secretin, to improve magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the pancreas in patients with pancreatic disease using endoscopy (ERCP) as a diagnostic reference.

14 Mar 2011

New study: Alcohol-related chronic pancreatitis is lower than other causes

The relative rate of alcohol-related chronic pancreatitis is lower when compared to other causes, according to a new study in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association Institute.

14 Mar 2011

Vertex to present telaprevir and VX-222 study results against hepatitis C at EASL annual meeting

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated announced today that 15 abstracts on the company's medicines in development for hepatitis C, including its protease inhibitor, telaprevir, and polymerase inhibitor, VX-222, were accepted for presentation at the 46th Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of the Liver in Berlin, Germany, March 30 to April 3, 2011.

9 Mar 2011

Oral magnesium oxide is a safe treatment for children with chronic constipation

Magnesium-containing cathartics are commonly used to treat chronic constipation. Although hypermagnesemia is a rare clinical condition, it can occur as a side effect of increased intake of magnesium salts.

9 Mar 2011

First urinary metabolomic investigation in gastric cancer using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

Metabolomics is a post-genomic research field for analysis of low molecular weight compounds in biological systems, and its approaches offer an analysis of metabolite level changes in biological samples. Recently, metabolomic method has shown great potentials in identifying the new diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets for cancers. However, metabolomic studies on cancer metastasis remain scarce.

9 Mar 2011

Autoimmune response mediated by T lymphocytes may play vital role in pathogenesis of biliary atresia

Biliary atresia (BA) is an inflammatory obliterative cholangiopathy with unknown etiology, leading to progressive fibrosis and cirrhosis. Microarray technology, emerged as an indispensable research tool for gene expression profiling, has been used to study the mechanism underlying BA, and allows the simultaneous analysis of thousands of transcripts within a single experiment.

9 Mar 2011

Study: HBV infection reduces risk of liver metastasis in CRC patients

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in Western countries. Metastatic liver disease more frequently develops metachronous metastasis following treatment of CRC.

9 Mar 2011

EC grants marketing authorization for InterMune's Esbriet to treat IPF

InterMune, Inc. today announced that the European Commission has granted marketing authorization for Esbriet. Esbriet is indicated in adults for the treatment of mild to moderate idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a progressive and fatal lung disease.

3 Mar 2011

Vertex announces positive interim results from telaprevir Phase 2 study in patients with HCV, HIV

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated announced today interim results from an ongoing, two-part, Phase 2 study evaluating telaprevir in combination with pegylated-interferon and ribavirin compared to pegylated-interferon and ribavirin alone in people who are infected with both genotype 1 hepatitis C virus and human immunodeficiency virus, also known as HCV-HIV co-infection.

3 Mar 2011

Scripps Health offers genetic testing to patients with Hepatitis C

Scripps Health is one of the first health systems in the United States to offer genetic testing as part of its care for hepatitis C patients planning to undergo drug treatment.

28 Feb 2011

Hepatology News and Research

Further Reading

DISCUSS survey findings highlight need to prioritize GERD dialogue

Researchers discover novel gene regulation mechanism that contributes to HCC development

Cognitive impairment may not be fully reversible in patients with liver disease: Study

Study: Dried plums more safe, effective than psyllium to treat constipation

Conservative approach with endoscopic techniques can resolve colonic perforation

Research: Underweight HCV-infected patients tend to be older at HCC onset

Prophylactic PEG placement prior to HNC therapy associated with high rate of non use

Hydro-stomach CT imaging is not a reliable tool for EGC detection: Study

Study underscores need for monitoring vitamin D levels in all cirrhosis patients

iTherX commences ITX-5061 Phase 1b study in patients with HCV

Repligen reports positive results from RG1068 Phase 3 study to improve MRI of the pancreas

New study: Alcohol-related chronic pancreatitis is lower than other causes

Vertex to present telaprevir and VX-222 study results against hepatitis C at EASL annual meeting

Oral magnesium oxide is a safe treatment for children with chronic constipation

First urinary metabolomic investigation in gastric cancer using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

Autoimmune response mediated by T lymphocytes may play vital role in pathogenesis of biliary atresia

Study: HBV infection reduces risk of liver metastasis in CRC patients

EC grants marketing authorization for InterMune's Esbriet to treat IPF

Vertex announces positive interim results from telaprevir Phase 2 study in patients with HCV, HIV

Scripps Health offers genetic testing to patients with Hepatitis C

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

Latest News