Gallstones News and Research

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Gallstones are small, pebble-like substances that develop in the gallbladder. The gallbladder is a small, pear-shaped sac located below your liver in the right upper abdomen. Gallstones form when liquid stored in the gallbladder hardens into pieces of stone-like material. The liquid—called bile—helps the body digest fats. Bile is made in the liver, then stored in the gallbladder until the body needs it. The gallbladder contracts and pushes the bile into a tube—called the common bile duct—that carries it to the small intestine, where it helps with digestion.

Breakdown of unsaturated fats can induce complications in obese patients with acute pancreatitis

The toxic byproducts produced by the breakdown of unsaturated fats lead to a higher likelihood of severe inflammation, cell death and multi-system organ failure among acute pancreatitis patients who are obese, say researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

3 Nov 2011

Gilead, Bristol-Myers Squibb to develop and commercialize fixed-dose combination for HIV

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and Gilead Sciences, Inc. today announced a licensing agreement for Bristol-Myers Squibb to develop and commercialize a fixed-dose combination containing Bristol-Myers Squibb's protease inhibitor REYATAZ (atazanavir sulfate) and Gilead's cobicistat, a pharmacoenhancing or "boosting" agent that increases blood levels of certain HIV medicines to potentially allow for one pill once daily dosing.

27 Oct 2011

Patients with episodic gallbladder pain may benefit from cholecystectomy

According to a new study in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, better understanding of a patient's abdominal pain could help physicians know which patients will benefit most from surgical removal of the gallbladder.

14 Oct 2011

Bariatric surgery is cost-effective but has long-term complications

The majority of people who undergo bariatric weight-loss surgery benefit from the procedure, but long-term complications and further surgery are not uncommon, according to a UK paper on late postoperative complications in the October issue of BJS, the British Journal of Surgery.

6 Sep 2011

Bear bile compound may help treat heart attack: Study

The compound, ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), is already used to lower cholesterol and help dissolve gallstones, and it's a key ingredient in many traditional Chinese medicines, which use bear bile. According to the latest research from Imperial College London it might also be able to treat abnormal heart rhythm, or arrhythmia, in fetuses and heart attack victims.

3 Aug 2011

Ursodeoxycholic acid could help prevent disturbances in heart's normal rhythm

A synthesised compound which is also found in bear bile could help prevent disturbances in the heart's normal rhythm, according to research published today in the journal Hepatology by a team from Imperial College London.

2 Aug 2011

Cortisol hormone controls bile acid recycling process

Nature sees to it that we do not have "too much choler" in our body. A delicately equilibrated regulation system ensures that there is always exactly the right amount of bile in the gallbladder. When we are hungry, our body releases a hormone called cortisol, which is a glucocorticoid. Hepatic cells receive this hormone signal through their cortisol receptors and respond by filling the gallbladder with bile in preparation of the imminent food intake.

8 Jul 2011

Study examines long-term GI complications in childhood cancer survivors

Individuals who are treated for cancer during childhood have a significantly higher risk of developing gastrointestinal complications - from mild to severe - later in life, according to a study led by the University of California, San Francisco. The findings underscore the need for childhood cancer survivors and their physicians to be aware of these risk factors to ensure patients' ongoing health care needs are met.

21 May 2011

Synergy expands GC-C agonist technology to lower cholesterol

Synergy Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a developer of new drugs to treat gastrointestinal (GI) disorders and diseases, announced today that it has successfully completed preclinical in vitro research demonstrating the inhibition of bile acid uptake by GC-C agonists and that it plans to commence animal studies shortly. Synergy believes this is the first time that GC-C agonists have been shown to potentially lower cholesterol.

18 May 2011

Research offers further evidence that diet affects gastrointestinal illnesses

Research being presented at Digestive Disease Week- offers further evidence that diet affects gastrointestinal illnesses, such as gallstones and celiac disease, and that some patients who think their digestive problems are caused by lactose intolerance are actually reacting to a psychological disorder.

9 May 2011

Antioxidants in walnuts can reduce risk of heart disease

A new scientific study positions walnuts in the No. 1 slot among a family of foods that lay claim to being among Mother Nature's most nearly perfect packaged foods: Tree and ground nuts.

28 Mar 2011

Researchers review patient outcomes from full, partial organ removal for kidney cancer

Patients with kidney cancer who had their entire organ removed were more likely to have more renal complications and poorer health after surgery, compared to those who had only part of their kidney removed, a study has shown.

19 Mar 2011

USC School of Medicine to host the first World Congress of Ultrasound in Medical Education

Ultrasound is a valuable tool that allows doctors to diagnose and treat patients quickly and accurately. It's been around for decades, but there has been revolutionary change in the technology in recent years, making the machines smaller, cheaper and smarter.

21 Jan 2011

Health Canada approves GORE VIABIL Biliary Endoprosthesis device

W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc. today announced it has received approval from Health Canada for the Removable GORE VIABIL Biliary Endoprosthesis.

17 Jan 2011

FDA accepts Merck's JANUMET extended-release formulation NDA for type 2 diabetes

Merck today announced that the New Drug Application (NDA) for the Company's investigational extended-release formulation of JANUMET for type 2 diabetes has been accepted for standard review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The Company is also moving forward as planned with regulatory filings in countries outside the United States.

12 Jan 2011

Study finds combined treatments safe and effective for severe acute pancreatitis

The use of combined treatments for severe acute pancreatitis is safe and effective in managing the disease, resulting in shorter hospitalizations and fewer radiological procedures than standard therapy, according to a study in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute. In a related study, doctors found that patients with infected pancreatic necrosis were able to avoid surgery through primary conservative treatment, which is in-patient medical treatment.

7 Jan 2011

Florida Hospital, Sanford-Burnham and Takeda enter obesity research collaboration

Florida Hospital, Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham), and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Takeda)(TSE: 4502), announced today that they have signed a research agreement to form a collaboration to discover and evaluate new therapeutic approaches to obesity, a growing worldwide health problem. The partnership aligns complementary strengths in biomedical research, clinical research and drug development to identify and validate obesity- related biomarkers and new peripheral molecular targets of mutual interest.

29 Dec 2010

VYTORIN reduces major vascular events in patients with chronic kidney disease

In a new investigational study of VYTORIN, the cholesterol-lowering medicine from Merck, VYTORIN 10/20 mg reduced the incidence of first major vascular events defined as non-fatal heart attacks or cardiac death, stroke or any revascularization procedure by a highly statistically significant 16.1 percent compared to placebo, Study of Heart and Renal Protection study involved more than 9,000 patients who, on average, had advanced or end-stage chronic kidney disease (CKD)

22 Nov 2010

Childhood cancer survivors at increased risk of gastrointestinal problems

People treated for cancer when they were children have a higher-than-average risk of gastrointestinal problems - some mild, some quite severe - in the years following treatment, according to a study to be presented at the 42nd Congress of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP) in Boston on Sunday, Oct. 24.

25 Oct 2010