Hepatology News and Research

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

Research article on Peliosis hepatis

Peliosis hepatis (PH) is a rare pathological entity. PH varies from minimal asymptomatic lesions to larger massive lesions that may present with cholestasis, liver failure, portal hypertension, avascular mass lesion, or even spontaneous rupture.

9 Dec 2009

Comparative study on erosive and nonerosive diseases

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is defined as the pathological retrograde movement of gastric contents into the esophagus. Various esophageal motility disturbances which may be important in reflux are observed in patients with GERD.

9 Dec 2009

Utility of CEH-EUS uses sonographic contrast agent to diagnose pancreatic tumors

Endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) is a highly sensitive diagnostic method for the detection of small pancreatic carcinomas. Recently, there have been some reports describing the utility of contrast-enhanced harmonic EUS (CEH-EUS) which uses sonographic contrast agent for differentiation of a pancreatic mass.

9 Dec 2009

Enrollment of patients for Phase I/IIa clinical study of Interleukin-7 commenced

Cytheris SA, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on research and development of new therapies for immune modulation, today announced that it has begun enrolling patients in its Phase I/IIa clinical program evaluating the company’s investigative immune-modulator, recombinant human Interleukin-7 (CYT107), in combination with standard antiviral treatment and vaccination in HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B-infected (HBV) patients.

8 Dec 2009

Lab grown muscle cells raise hope for gastric reflux and fecal incontinence

A new study shows that muscle cells grown in the lab can restore an intestine's ability to squeeze shut properly. The work, performed in dogs and rats, might ultimately help treat patients with conditions such as gastric reflux and fecal incontinence.

5 Dec 2009

Hyperion Therapeutics commences enrollment in its HPN-100 episodic hepatic encephalopathy trial

Hyperion Therapeutics, Inc. today announced that the first patient has been enrolled in its phase II clinical trial of investigational compound HPN-100 (glycerol phenylbutyrate).

3 Dec 2009

Nonanesthesiologist-administered propofol for GI procedures safe

The worldwide safety experience of endoscopist-administered propofol sedation now exceeds 600,000 patients. The low rate of serious adverse events underscores the safety of nonanesthesiologist-administered propofol (NAAP) for gastrointestinal (GI) procedures, provided that it is administered by a team of individuals who have received training specific to the administration of propofol according to the "Position statement: nonanesthesiologist administration of propofol for GI endoscopy" issued by the four major gastroenterology and hepatology societies.

3 Dec 2009

Healthy dietary habits are important for GCA prevention

The gastric cardiac adenocarcinoma (GCA) is a very rare disease. In recent decades, however, the incidence of the GCA has increased dramatically in many Western countries. An increasing trend in GCA is also observed in municipal regions but not in rural regions of China. Another striking feature is the strong male predominance among patients with GCA. Some of the reasons above are still unclear and require further epidemiological investigations.

26 Nov 2009

HPA-specific shRNA holds potential as a novel therapeutic strategy for gastric cancer

Previous studies have indicated that the heparanase (HPA) is correlated with histopathological parameters and poor prognosis of gastric cancers. Although their efficiencies in inhibiting the expression of HPA, the traditional HPA inhibitors may produce nonspecific and undesirable effects. In recent years, genetic approaches targeting HPA have been regarded as a promising alternative.

25 Nov 2009

Americans with hepatitis C are at increased risk of developing liver cancer, says NVHR

New peer-reviewed data finding that fewer than one-fifth of the nearly 4 million Americans infected with chronic hepatitis C virus have received anti-viral therapy in recent years should be a wake-up call that Congress needs to move urgently on bipartisan legislation to support new state-based detection, research, and surveillance efforts, the National Viral Hepatitis Roundtable (NVHR) said today.

24 Nov 2009

Treatment rates for hepatitis C virus declining, say researchers

Researchers from the University of Michigan determined that only 663,000 of the approximately 3.9 million Americans with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection received antiviral therapy between 2002 and 2007.

24 Nov 2009

Study: Impaired oxidation in liver associated with progression to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

A recent metobolomics study by researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center in Richmond found that impaired peroxisomal oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) is associated with the progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver (NAFL) to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

24 Nov 2009

Antiviral therapy for hepatitis C appears to be declining in the U.S.; lack of diagnosis is primary barrier to treatment

23 Nov 2009

New studies suggest elevated risk of gastrointestinal cancers in diabetic patients

There are minimal data assessing the relationship between diabetes with gallbladder, biliary and pancreatic cancer. Recent small studies have suggested an elevated risk of pancreatic cancer only in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM).

20 Nov 2009

Gastrointestinal symptoms may interfere with nutritional management of ED patients

Eating disorders (ED) patients display a high prevalence of gastrointestinal symptoms and functional gastrointestinal disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome. These symptoms may interfere with their nutritional management. Ingestion of fructose-sorbitol (F-S) is an established means of gastrointestinal symptom provocation in irritable bowel syndrome patients.

20 Nov 2009

Embryonic stem cells raise hope of cellular replacement therapy for liver failure

Embryonic stem (ES) cells, known for their capacity to proliferate indefinitely and differentiate into almost all types of cells including hepatocytes, have raised the hope of cellular replacement therapy for liver failure. There have been several protocols available for hepatic fate specification from ES cells, however, most of the protocols currently used result in low yield or purity of functional hepatocytes. Valproic acid (VPA), a histone deacetylase inhibitor, has been demonstrated to facilitate the hepatic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells. However, little is know about whether VPA could induce the hepatic differentiation of ES cells.

19 Nov 2009

Report on unexplained liver haemorrhage after metastasis radiofrequency ablation published

Colorectal carcinoma is one of the most common cancers in the world. Approximately one in four of these patients have metastases at diagnosis, liver being the most common site involved. Although historically it was considered that liver metastases meant a very poor prognosis, today, due to improved systemic therapy, many patients will be candidates for local hepatic treatments such as surgery or less aggressive radiofrequency ablation.

19 Nov 2009

Reduction of serum bilirubin, the hallmark of successful biliary drainage

Biliary drainage is performed as a palliative treatment of hilar cholangiocarcinoma. The reduction of serum bilirubin is usually the hallmark of successful biliary drainage. However, some patients may have persistent jaundice or scanty bile output after biliary drainage.

19 Nov 2009

Study: EP4 agonist may reduce gastric bleeding and inflammation

Over 300 million patients use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in the world to treat pain, arthritis, fever and other diseases. Nearly 30% of the users suffer from gastric lesions and bleeding.

19 Nov 2009

Experimental study shows beneficial effects of Vardenafil on NSAID-induced gastric ulcer

Indomethacin has been proved by epidemiological and experimental studies to be closely associated with peptic ulcer development. Vardenafil is a potent phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitor and its effects on the gastric mucosa havenot been reported.

19 Nov 2009

Hepatology News and Research

Further Reading

Research article on Peliosis hepatis

Comparative study on erosive and nonerosive diseases

Utility of CEH-EUS uses sonographic contrast agent to diagnose pancreatic tumors

Enrollment of patients for Phase I/IIa clinical study of Interleukin-7 commenced

Lab grown muscle cells raise hope for gastric reflux and fecal incontinence

Hyperion Therapeutics commences enrollment in its HPN-100 episodic hepatic encephalopathy trial

Nonanesthesiologist-administered propofol for GI procedures safe

Healthy dietary habits are important for GCA prevention

HPA-specific shRNA holds potential as a novel therapeutic strategy for gastric cancer

Americans with hepatitis C are at increased risk of developing liver cancer, says NVHR

Treatment rates for hepatitis C virus declining, say researchers

Study: Impaired oxidation in liver associated with progression to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

Antiviral therapy for hepatitis C appears to be declining in the U.S.; lack of diagnosis is primary barrier to treatment

New studies suggest elevated risk of gastrointestinal cancers in diabetic patients

Gastrointestinal symptoms may interfere with nutritional management of ED patients

Embryonic stem cells raise hope of cellular replacement therapy for liver failure

Report on unexplained liver haemorrhage after metastasis radiofrequency ablation published

Reduction of serum bilirubin, the hallmark of successful biliary drainage

Study: EP4 agonist may reduce gastric bleeding and inflammation

Experimental study shows beneficial effects of Vardenafil on NSAID-induced gastric ulcer

Improving healthcare sustainability through carbon data

A New Approach to Preventing Bladder Cancer Recurrence

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

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