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At least 1,315 records · Page 73Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

Determinants of response to a prokinetic agent in neuropathic chronic intestinal motility disorder.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Reasons for the variable efficacy of prokinetic agents in the treatment of chronic intestinal motility disorders are unclear. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of extrinsic autonomic neuropathy and motility patterns on the symptom response to cisapride in 42 such patients. METHODS: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, two-dose (10 and 20 mg, three times daily), 12-week study included (1) measurement of autonomic (including abdominal vagal) function; (2) standardized 5-hour upper gastrointestinal manometry; and (3) assessment of symptoms based on visual analog scale at baseline and 6 and 12 weeks. Statistical analysis compared symptom response among treatment and autonomic dysfunction groups and assessed the influence of absence of migrating motor complexes and presence of postprandial antral hypomotility on symptomatic responses to cisapride. RESULTS: There was no significant overall effect of cisapride in the entire group of 42 patients. Generalized sympathetic and vagal dysfunctions influence the response of patients with neuropathic chronic intestinal motility disorder to two doses of cisapride. CONCLUSIONS: Idiopathic intestinal motility disorder, unassociated with abdominal vagal dysfunction, is more likely to respond to cisapride. Detailed characterization of patient subgroups is crucial to designing treatment trials in patients with small bowel motility disorders.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

[Angiography for the management of poorly controlled gastrointestinal hemorrhage--20 cases clinical observation].

Diagnostic and therapeutic angiography has demonstrated an important role in gastrointestinal hemorrhage. During the past 2 years, we performed angiography in the management of 20 patients with uncontrolled gastrointestinal bleeding. Conservative management including medication and transfusion would not appear to suffice in these patients and most patients had been evaluated to have a high operative risk in our series. Ten of the 20 patients had renal dysfunction (creatinine > 1.7 mg/dl) before angiography. The role of angiography in the management of patients with renal dysfunction remains controversial because angiography is likely to produce acute renal failure. We performed angiography to stop bleeding in these patients with renal dysfunction because they could die of blood loss. In our 20 cases, bleeding sites were identified in 14 patients. The detection rate was 70%. Thirteen of the 14 with the use of either vasopressin infusion or arterial embolization showed complete cessation of bleeding in 10 patients. Three cases failed to be controlled. One received an operation after a bleeding site was located by angiography. In our study, sepsis with renal failure was the leading cause of mortality (6 cases). Ten patients with pre-existing renal dysfunction had angiography performed and only one showed abrupt elevation of creatinine levels after angiography. He also developed sepsis. Deterioration of renal function was possibly due to angiography or more likely due to sepsis and hypovolemia. Six patients died of sepsis after angiography although 4 of these patients showed cessation of bleeding. Four cases with pre-existing renal dysfunction and without evidence of infection survived after angiographic management.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Preventing and treating the complications of hormone therapy.

Hormonal manipulation in the form of androgen-deprivation therapy for prostate cancer was introduced by Huggins and Hodges in 1941 and resulted in a Nobel Prize in 1966. Hormonal therapy initially had been used in metastatic prostate cancer, but the indications have been expanded including failed local therapy, locally advanced prostate cancer, and neoadjuvant or adjuvant therapy in high-risk localized prostate cancer. In view of the magnitude of the problem of prostate cancer and relatively frequent use of hormonal manipulation, it is important for clinicians to be aware of common side effects, prevention, and treatment to improve quality of life and reduce morbidity and mortality in patients with prostate cancer. This review focuses on the common side effects of hormonal treatment such as osteoporosis, anemia, hot flashes, erectile dysfunction, muscle wasting, gynecomastia, decline in cognitive function, depression, increase in body fat and metabolic changes, and their prevention and treatment.

Androgen Antagonists↗
PubMed2003

Gastrointestinal disorders of the critically ill. Shock liver.

Shock liver describes a collecting pool of critically ill patients in whom the elevation of liver function tests or overt hepatic dysfunction is apparent. Different grades of shock liver affect about 50% of all intensive-care patients, varying from a mild elevation of serum aminotransferase and bilirubin levels in septic patients to an acute onset of high serum aminotransferases after haemodynamic shock. Abnormalities can subside within days or progressively deteriorate when persistent hepatic microcirculatory failure is present. Although hepatic injury in critically ill patients influences mortality rates it is underdiagnosed. The underlying pathophysiology involves changes in the portal and arterial blood supply as well as in microcirculation. Cross-talk between hepatocytes, Kupffer cells and endothelial cells, leading to an inflammatory response mediated primarily by tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), is central to shock liver. The liver is a victim of shock inducers, and can also be the orchestrator of the inflammatory response syndrome (IRS). Hepatic injury by TNF-alpha is modulated by the prevalent pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory mediator profile elaborated by Kupffer cells. Kupffer cells additionally participate in the clearance of endotoxin, bacteria and inflammatory mediators and are thereby capable of preventing IRS. The hepatocyte undergoes dramatic alterations in synthetic activity, biliary transport, bile flow and glucose metabolism. Although standard determinations of aminotransferases, coagulation studies, glucose, lactate and bilirubin can detect hepatic injury they only partially reflect the cellular mechanisms driving shock liver. The management of shock liver is focused on the prevention of precipitating causes by controlling sepsis, circulation parameters and metabolism in addition to the cautious monitoring of therapeutic measures that can increase hepatic injury, which include intravenous nutrition, mechanical ventilation and catecholamine administration.

Critical Illness↗
PubMed2005

Role of mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of selective neuronal loss in Wernicke's encephalopathy.

Thiamine deficiency results in Wernicke's encephalopathy and is commonly encountered in chronic alcoholism, gastrointestinal diseases, and HIV AIDS. The earliest metabolic consequence of thiamine deficiency is a selective loss in activity of the thiamine diphosphate-dependent enzyme alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase (alpha-KGDH), a rate-limiting tricarboxylic acid cycle enzyme. Thiamine deficiency is characterized neuropathologically by selective neuronal cell death in the thalamus, pons, and cerebellum. The cause of this region-selective neuronal loss is unknown, but mechanisms involving cellular energy failure, focal lactic acidosis, and NMDA receptor-mediated excitotoxicity have classically been implicated. More recently, evidence supports a role for oxidative stress. Evidence includes increased endothelial nitric oxide synthase, nitrotyrosine deposition, microglial activation, and lipid peroxidation. Reactive oxygen species production results in decreased expression of astrocytic glutamate transporters and decreased activities of alpha-KGDH, resulting in an amplification of cell death mechanisms in thiamine deficiency.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Biofeedback treatment of gastrointestinal disorders.

Biofeedback has had a greater impact on gastroenterology than on any other medical subspecialty. Biofeedback is the treatment of choice for many of the most common types of fecal incontinence, and preliminary studies suggest that it is likely to become a preferred method for treating patients with constipation related to inability to relax the striated pelvic floor muscles during defecation. This dysfunction may account for up to 50% of patients with chronic constipation. Thermal biofeedback forms part of a multicomponent behavioral treatment for irritable bowel syndrome that is reported to be effective, and other promising applications of biofeedback for gastrointestinal disorders are under investigation.

Biofeedback, Psychology↗
PubMed2005

[Current views of vascular endothelium in health and at a pathology of the gastrointestinal tract].

The article presents current data on the structure, function and biological role of vascular endothelium as well as its role in the genesis of pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract. Characteristics of endothelial vasoconstrictors and vasodilators are given. When we take into account the literature data and authors' studies, it becomes expedient to conduct further studies of the role of endothelial dysfunction in the development of diseases of the digestive tract in view of little knowledge of it at this pathology as well as availability of mostly experimental data.

Endothelium, Vascular↗
PubMed2004

Analysis of factors contributing to higher erythropoietin levels in patients with chronic liver disease.

BACKGROUND: Dysregulated erythropoietin (EPO) plasma levels may play a role in the pathophysiology of chronic liver disease (CLD) because chronic anaemia is frequently observed in patients with liver cirrhosis. We aimed to identify the factors contributing to EPO regulation in patients with CLD. METHODS: Plasma EPO concentrations were correlated with clinical and laboratory parameters in 111 CLD patients and 220 healthy controls. RESULTS: Anaemia, though generally mild, was common in CLD patients, and thrombocytopenia and previous bleeding episodes were observed in two-thirds of the patients. Plasma EPO levels were significantly elevated in CLD patients (P < 0.001). EPO increased according to Child's stages of cirrhosis, independently of the aetiology of CLD. EPO correlated with haemoglobin (r= -0.498, P < 0.001). Additionally, EPO independently correlated with markers of liver dysfunction, e.g. prothrombin time, albumin concentration or cholinesterase activity, and platelet count. EPO was also significantly elevated in patients with a current bleeding tendency and with prior gastrointestinal haemorrhages. EPO levels were increased in patients with impaired pulmonary function, e.g. decreased diffusion capacity, vital capacity or hyperventilation. Interestingly, plasma interleukin-6 (IL-6) concentrations positively correlated with EPO (r=0.277, P = 0.003), suggesting a possible mechanism of EPO upregulation in patients with CLD through IL-6 dependent pathways, e.g. binding of STAT transcription factors in the putative EPO promoter region. CONCLUSIONS: EPO is upregulated in patients with chronic liver diseases in response to anaemia, bleeding complications, impaired pulmonary function, thrombocytopenia and liver dysfunction. IL-6 dependent pathways could be involved in mediating elevated EPO levels in CLD patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Oxytocin stimulates colonic motor activity in healthy women.

The effects of oxytocin in the gastrointestinal tract are unclear. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of infusion of oxytocin on colonic motility and sensitivity in healthy women. Fourteen healthy women were investigated twice. A 6-channel perfusion catheter, with three recording points (2 cm apart) proximally and three recording points distally to a barostat balloon, was inserted to the splenic flexure. An intestinal feeding tube was placed in the mid-duodenum. A 90-min duodenal lipid infusion of 3 kcal min(-1) was administered. Thirty minutes after the start of the lipid infusion, the subject randomly received either 20 or 40 mU min(-1) of oxytocin, or isotonic saline as intravenous infusions for 90 min. Meanwhile, the colonic motility was recorded. During the last 30 min of oxytocin and saline infusion, the visceral sensitivity to balloon distensions was examined. During lipid infusion the number of antegrade contractions per hour was 0.7 +/- 0.3 after saline and 3.9 +/- 1.4 after oxytocin (P = 0.03), indicating more pronounced lumen-occlusive contractile activity after oxytocin administration. Some of these consisted of high-amplitude (> 103 mmHg in amplitude) antegrade contractions. Lipid infusion evoked a decrease of the balloon volume, reflecting increased colonic tone, but there was no difference between saline and oxytocin. Sensory thresholds did not differ significantly between saline and oxytocin. Infusion of oxytocin stimulates antegrade peristaltic contractions in stimulated colon in healthy women. The effects of oxytocin on colonic motor activity deserve to be further explored, especially in patients with colonic peristaltic dysfunction.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Risk factors for clinically important upper gastrointestinal bleeding in patients requiring mechanical ventilation. Canadian Critical Care Trials Group.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the incidence and risk factors for clinically important upper gastrointestinal bleeding in critically ill patients requiring mechanical ventilation. DESIGN: In duplicate, blinded adjudicators determined the presence of clinically important gastrointestinal bleeding using a priori criteria, evaluating relevant clinical, laboratory, and diagnostic data. Cox proportional hazards regression analyses were used to examine baseline and time-dependent risk factors for bleeding. SETTING: Sixteen university-affiliated intensive care units (ICUs) in Canada. PATIENTS: A total of 1,077 critically ill ICU patients ventilated for at least 48 hrs. INTERVENTIONS: Patients were randomized to stress ulcer prophylaxis with intravenous ranitidine or nasogastric sucralfate; otherwise, management was at the discretion of the ICU team. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Demographic data included patient characteristics, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, and multiple organ dysfunction (MOD) score. Each day in the ICU, physiologic measurements including MOD score, feeding, and other treatment variables were recorded. The significant risk factors for upper gastrointestinal bleeding in the univariable analyses were low platelet count, maximum serum creatinine, maximum MOD score, maximum pulmonary component of the MOD score, maximum hepatic component of the MOD score, maximum renal component of the MOD score, enteral nutrition, and stress ulcer prophylaxis with ranitidine. The only independent predictors of bleeding in the multivariable analysis were maximum serum creatinine (relative risk = 1.16 [95% confidence interval = 1.02-1.32]), enteral nutrition (relative risk = 0.30 [95% confidence interval = 0.13-0.67]), and ranitidine administration (relative risk = 0.39 [95% confidence interval = 0.17-0.83]). CONCLUSIONS: In critically ill ventilated patients, renal failure was independently associated with an increased risk of clinically important gastrointestinal bleeding, whereas enteral nutrition and stress ulcer prophylaxis with ranitidine conferred significantly lower bleeding rates.

APACHE↗
PubMed2004

Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth: a framework for understanding irritable bowel syndrome.

CONTEXT: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which affects 11% to 14% of the population, is a puzzling condition with multiple models of pathophysiology including altered motility, visceral hypersensitivity, abnormal brain-gut interaction, autonomic dysfunction, and immune activation. Although no conceptual framework accounts for all the symptoms and observations in IBS, a unifying explanation may exist since 92% of these patients share the symptom of bloating regardless of their predominant complaint. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION: Ovid MEDLINE was searched through May 2004 for relevant English-language articles beginning with those related to bloating, gas, and IBS. Bibliographies of pertinent articles and books were also scanned for additional suitable citations. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS: The possibility that small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) may explain bloating in IBS is supported by greater total hydrogen excretion after lactulose ingestion, a correlation between the pattern of bowel movement and the type of excreted gas, a prevalence of abnormal lactulose breath test in 84% of IBS patients, and a 75% improvement of IBS symptoms after eradication of SIBO. Altered gastrointestinal motility and sensation, changed activity of the central nervous system, and increased sympathetic drive and immune activation may be understood as consequences of the host response to SIBO. CONCLUSIONS: The gastrointestinal and immune effects of SIBO provide a possible unifying framework for understanding frequent observations in IBS, including postprandial bloating and distension, altered motility, visceral hypersensitivity, abnormal brain-gut interaction, autonomic dysfunction, and immune activation.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1985

Laryngeal perichondritis and abscess.

Primary infection of the laryngeal cartilages has become rare in the antibiotic era. However, trauma, irradiation, a foreign body, or cancer may initiate the infection, particularly in the immunocompromised patient. We encountered three cases of perichondritis and abscess associated with airway intubation, nasogastric intubation, and external beam radiotherapy. Laryngeal perichondritis and abscess remain serious potential causes of laryngeal deformity and dysfunction.

Abscess↗
PubMed1999

Effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory therapy on platelets.

Aspirin and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) can produce a mild, systemic hemostatic defect by inhibiting normal platelet function. Aspirin acetylates and permanently inactivates cyclooxygenase (COX), while nonaspirin NSAIDs reversibly block COX; thus, all of these drugs cause platelet dysfunction by inhibiting the formation of thromboxane A2, a platelet-activating and vasoconstricting eicosanoid. However, spontaneous bleeding complications outside the gastrointestinal tract very rarely result from the use of aspirin and other NSAIDs in individuals who are otherwise hemostatically normal. Most types of surgery are not usually associated with clinically significant bleeding in patients taking these drugs, making it typically unnecessary to discontinue them and thus delay surgery for the purpose of restoring normal hemostasis. Exceptions may include operations at sites where optimal hemostasis is critical, surgical manipulation of the genitourinary tract and oral cavity, and possibly cardiac surgery. Factors that increase the risk of bleeding with aspirin and other NSAIDs include coexisting coagulation abnormalities and the simultaneous use of alcohol or anticoagulants.

Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal↗
PubMed1997

Morphological changes in the enteric nervous system of the transplanted fetal rat intestine.

In this study, enteric nervous system (ENS) of the fetal intestinal grafts was examined histopathologically. Forty-four rat fetal small intestines were transplanted syngenetically into the subcutaneous region of adult rats without vascular anastomosis. Thirty-two grafts survived. They were removed 2, 4, 6, and 8 weeks after transplantation and examined using (1) H&E staining, (2) AChE and NADPH-diaphorase histochemistry, and (3) protein gene product 9.5, S-100 protein, glial fibrillary acidic protein, tyrosine hydroxylase, nerve growth factor receptor, calcitonin gene-related peptide, neuropeptide Y, vasoactive intestinal peptide, somatostatin, and substance P immunohistochemistry. The grafts were compared with the intestines of 2-, 4-, 6- and 8-week-old control rats. ENS of the grafts was different from the controls as follows: (1) tyrosine hydroxylase and neuropeptide Y were markedly reduced but present, suggesting that the extrinsic innervation was present; (2) nitric oxide-producing neurons were well preserved in grafts; (3) hyperganglionosis in the myenteric plexus was seen in 6- and 8-week grafts; (4) AChE activity was increased in the circular muscle and in the lamina propria, (5) S-100 was increased in the lamina propria in 6- and 8-week grafts, (6) calcitonin gene-related peptide was increased in 6- and 8-week grafts, (7) nerve fibers in the muscle layers ran irregularly and disorderly, and (8) hypertrophy of smooth muscle layers. Our data show that although extrinsic as well as intrinsic innervation is present in the fetal intestinal grafts, there is hyperinnervation of the intrinsic nervous system and reduced innervation of the extrinsic ENS. These morphological changes in the ENS of the fetal intestinal grafts may result in motility dysfunction.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Proximal and distal gut hormone secretion in irritable bowel syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: Sensory and motor dysfunctions of the gut are both important characteristics of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Several gut peptides contribute to the regulation of gastrointestinal function but little is known about gut hormone secretion in IBS. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We evaluated perceptual thresholds and fasting and postprandial plasma levels of proximal (cholecystokinin (CCK), motilin) and distal (peptide YY) gut peptides up to 1 h after ingestion of a high caloric meal in 99 IBS patients and 40 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. RESULTS: Fasting plasma CCK levels were significantly elevated in patients (1.2+/-0.8 pM) compared with those in controls (0.8+/-0.7 pM, p=0.006), as was the incremental postprandial CCK response (72+/-73 versus 40+/-42 pM.60 min, respectively; p=0.003). No differences in fasting and postprandial motilin or PYY levels were found. The postprandial PYY response was significantly increased in hypersensitive compared to normosensitive patients (215+/-135 versus 162+/-169 pM, p=0.048). Patients with a diarrhoea predominant bowel habit had higher fasting motilin levels compared to constipated patients or alternating type IBS patients (82.1+/-36.5 versus 60.8+/-25.1 versus 57.5+/-23.9 pM, one-way ANOVA p=0.003). CONCLUSIONS: IBS patients have increased fasting and postprandial plasma levels of CCK. Changes in plasma levels of motilin and PYY may contribute to the clinical expression of IBS, such as the presence of visceral hypersensitivity or a predominant bowel habit.

Adolescent↗