Detection of Serum Aberrant CDKN2/P16 DNA in Colorectal Cancer

Objective： To search for a biomarker for colorectal cancer. Methods： The MSP, SSCP and deletion tests with serum have been taken simultaneously in 100 cases of colorectal cancer and 2 groups of controls, as well as the specimens of 26 cancer tissues and 22 paracancerous tissues and 29 cases of benign disease tissues for a contrast. Results： The aberrant methylation rate of P16 in the serum was 69.00%, deletion rate 4.00% and suspicious point mutation rate 15.00% in colorectal cancer patients. The data of cancer tissues were the same as those of the serum, but in paracancerous tissue those were significantly lower. In 10 cases, sequencing analysis revealed that there were 3 cases of missense, one case of frameshift and one case of nonsense. Among them, four cases had P16 protein deletion. As a tumor marker, the sensitivity of combined use of three methods was 88.00%, specificity 96.87% and accuracy 90.15%. The combined use of MSP and SSCP could obtain the same results. Conclusion： The content of DNA in serum is minimal, but it reflects the tumor burden of patients. The 10^-3 fragments of DNA could be detected in the serum by MSP. It can be used in the clinical diagnosis or popular investigation, and long-term postoperative follow-up.

Pediatric gastrointestinal bleeding: Perspectives from the Italian Society of Pediatric Gastroenterology

There are many causes of gastrointestinal bleeding(GIB) in children, and this condition is not rare, having a reported incidence of 6.4%. Causes vary with age, but show considerable overlap; moreover, while many of the causes in the pediatric population are similar to those in adults, some lesions are unique to children. The diagnostic approach for pediatric GIB includes definition of the etiology, localization of the bleeding site and determination of the severity of bleeding; timely and accurate diagnosis is necessary to reduce morbidity and mortality. To assist medical care providers in the evaluation and management of children with GIB, the "Gastro-Ped Bleed Team" of the Italian Society of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition(SIGENP) carried out a systematic search on MEDLINE via Pub Med(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/) to identify all articles published in English from January 1990 to 2016; the following key words were used to conduct the electronic search: "upper GIB" and "pediatric" [all fields]; "lower GIB" and "pediatric" [all fields]; "obscure GIB" and "pediatric" [all fields]; "GIB" and "endoscopy" [all fields]; "GIB" and "therapy" [all fields]. The identified publications included articles describing randomized controlled trials, reviews, case reports, cohort studies, casecontrol studies and observational studies. References from the pertinent articles were also reviewed. This paper expresses a position statement of SIGENP that can have an immediate impact on clinical practice and for which sufficient evidence is not available in literature. The experts participating in this effort were selected according to their expertise and professional qualifications.

Successful endoscopic sclerotherapy for bleeding gastric varices with combined cyanoacrylate and aethoxysklerol

Two patients with liver cirrhosis and portal hyper-tension related to hepatitis infection were admitted to Shanghai Ruijin Hospital due to recurrent melena and hematemesis. Isolated gastric varices were observed in the gastric fundus during the retroflexion of gastroscope. We carried out endoscopic sclerotherapy successfully for bleeding gastric varices with combined cyanoacrylate and aethoxysklerol, which disappeared dramatically several months after two courses of sclerotherapy for each patient. No complication and clinical signs of gastrointestinal re-bleeding were observed during the 6-mo endoscopic follow-up. CT portal angiography (CTPA) has been widely used in the assessment of variceal treatment and improves the results of endoscopic injection therapy.

Transnasal endoscopic retrograde chalangiopancreatography using an ultrathin endoscope: A prospective comparison with a routine oral procedure

AIM: To investigate if transnasal endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (n-ERCP) using an ultrathin forward-viewing scope may overcome the disadvantages of conventional oral ERCP (o-ERCP) related to the large- caliber side-viewing duodenoscope. METHODS: The study involved 50 patients in whom 25 cases each were assigned to the o-ERCP and n-ERCP groups. We compared the requirements of esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) prior to ERCP, rates and times required for successful cannulation into the pancreatobiliary ducts, incidence of post-procedure hyperamylasemia, cardiovascular parameters during the procedure, the dose of a sedative drug, and successful rates of endoscopic naso-biliary drainage (ENBD). RESULTS: Screening gastrointestinal observations were easily performed by the forward-viewing scope and thus no prior EGD was required in the n-ERCP group. There was no significant difference in the rates or times for cannulation, or incidence of hyperamylasemia between the groups. However, the cannulation was relatively difficult in n-ERCP when the scope appeared U-shape under fluoroscopy. Increments of blood pressure and the amount of a sedative drug were significantly lower in the n-ERCP group. ENBD was successfully performed succeeding to the n-ERCP in which mouth-to-nose transfer of the drainage tube was not required. CONCLUSION: n-ERCP is likely a well-tolerable methodwith less cardiovascular stress and no need of prior EGD or mouth-to-nose transfer of the ENBD tube. However, a deliberate application is needed since its performance is difficult in some cases and is not feasible for some endoscopic treatments such as stenting.

Post-radiation survival time in hepatocellular carcinoma based on predictors for CT-determined, transarterial embolization and various other parameters

AIM: In this retrospective study of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), we have investigated the efficacy of CT-derived parameters, laboratory measurements, clinical assessment and associated transarterial embolization (TAE) as predictors of post-radiotherapy survival time. METHODS: Sixty-six patients diagnosed with unresectable HCC that had undergone radiotherapy at two medical university hospitals in Taipei were enrolled in the study. Using multivariant analysis, pre-treatment parameters including tumor number and CT confirmation of PVT and ascites were compared. Multivariant analysis was also used for comparison of the mean pretreatment values for laboratory measurements, including alpha-fetoprotein, direct/total bilirubin and GOT/GPT levels, and clinical history of chronic hepatitis across the three survival-time categories. The x2 was used to test the significance of the relationship between survival time and TAE procedure. The P values for the above tests were deemed statistically significant where P<0.05. RESULTS: Portal vein thrombosis (P= 0.032) and ascites (P><0.05) were negative predictors of post-radiation survival time. Low-grade liver cirrhosis (A or B), lower tumor volume and low levels of AFT, GOT/GPT, and total bilirubin were predictors of longer post-radiation survival time (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: The CT and clinical and laboratory assessment provide a reference for, and enable estimation of, probable survival times in HCC patients after radiotherapy. Tumor volume, severity of liver cirrhosis, status with respect to portal vein thrombosis and ascites and AFT, GOT/GPT and total bilirubin values were significant predictors of survival in this study.

Endoscopic band ligation and endoscopic hemoclip placement for patients with Mallory-Weiss syndrome and active bleeding

AIM: To compare the hemostatic efficacy and safety of two mechanical endoscopic methods: endoscopic band ligation (EBL) and endoscopic hemoclip placement (EHP) in patients with actively bleeding Mallory-Weiss syndrome (MWS). METHODS: A prospective randomized study to compare the efficacy and safety of EHP with EBL was performed from January 2002 to August 2005. Forty-one patients with active bleeding from MWS were treated with EHP (n = 21) or EBL (n = 20). RESULTS: There were no significant differences between groups with respect to clinical and endoscopic characteristics. The mean number of hemoclips applied was 3.2 ± 1.5 and the mean number of bands applied was 1.2 ± 0.4. Primary hemostasis was achieved in all patients. Recurrent bleeding was observed in one patient from the EHP group and two from the EBL group. Patients with recurrent bleeding were treated by the same modality as at randomization and secondary hemostasis was achieved in all. There were no significant differences between the two groups in total transfusion amount or duration of hospital stay. No complications or bleeding-related death resulted. CONCLUSION: EHP and EBL are equally effective and safe for the management of active bleeding in patients with Mallory-Weiss syndrome, even in those with shock or comorbid diseases.

Capsule endoscopy in neoplastic diseases

Until recently, diagnosis and management of small-bowel tumors were delayed by the diffi culty of access to the small bowel and the poor diagnostic capabilities of the available diagnostic techniques. An array of new methods has recently been developed, increasing the possibility of detecting these tumors at an earlier stage. Capsule endoscopy (CE) appears to be an ideal tool to recognize the presence of neoplastic lesions along this organ, since it is non-invasive and enables the entire small bowel to be visualized. High- quality images of the small-bowel mucosa may be captured and small and ? at lesions recognized, without exposure to radiation. Recent studies on a large population of patients undergoing CE have reported small-bowel tumor frequency only slightly above that reported in previous surgical series (range, 1.6%-2.4%) and have also confirmed that the main clinical indication to CE in patients with small-bowel tumors is obscure gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding. The majority of tumors identified by CE are malignant; many were unsuspected and not found by other methods. However, it remains difficult to identify pathology and tumor type based on the lesion’s endoscopic appearance. Despite its limitations, CE provides crucial information leading in most cases to changes in subsequent patient management. Whether the use of CE in combination with other new diagnostic (MRI or multidetector CT enterography) and therapeutic (Push- and-pull enteroscopy) techniques will lead to earlier diagnosis and treatment of these neoplasms, ultimately resulting in a survival advantage and in cost savings,remains to be determined through carefully-designed studies.

Role of videocapsule endoscopy for gastrointestinal bleeding

Obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) is defi ned as bleeding of an unknown origin that persists or recurs after negative initial upper and lower endoscopies. Several techniques, such as endoscopy, arteriography, scintigraphy and barium radiology are helpful for recognizing the bleeding source; nevertheless, in about 5%-10% of cases the bleeding lesion cannot be determined. The development of videocapsule endoscopy (VCE) has permitted a direct visualization of the small intestine mucosa. We will analyze those techniques in more detail. The diagnostic yield of CE for OGIB varies from 38% to 93%, being in the higher range in those cases with obscure-overt bleeding.

Delayed hemorrhage from hepatic artery after ultrasound-guided percutaneous liver biopsy: A case report

Percutaneous liver biopsy is considered one of the most important diagnostic tools to evaluate diffuse liver diseases. Pseudoaneurysm of hepatic artery is an unusual complication after ultrasound-guided percutaneous liver biopsy. Delayed hemorrhage occurs much less frequently. We report a case of pseudoaneurysm of the hepatic artery of a 46-year-old man who was admitted for abdominal pain after 4 d of liver biopsy. The bleeding was controlled initially by angiographic embolization. However, recurrent bleeding could not be controlled by repeat angiography, and the patient died 4 d after admission from multiorgan failure. The admittedly rare possibility of delayed hemorrhage should be considered whenever a liver biopsy is performed.

Duplication cyst of the small intestine found by double-balloon endoscopy:A case report

A 35-year-old man was admitted due to bloody stool and anemia. The bleeding source could not be detected by esophagogastroduodenoscopy or colonoscopy. Double balloon endoscopy (DBE) revealed a diverticulum-like hole in which coagula stuck in the ileum at 1 meter on the oral side from the ileocecal valve. The adjacent mucosa just to the oral side of the hole was elevated like a submucosal tumor. The lesion was considered the source of bleeding and removed surgically. It was determined to be a cyst with an ileal structure on the mesenteric aspect accompanying gastric mucosa. The diagnosis was a duplication cyst of the ileum,which is a rare entity that can cause gastrointestinal bleeding. In the present case,DBE was used to fi nd the hemorrhagic duplication cyst in the ileum.

Syphilis Serologic Follow-up After Regular Treatment

Objective： To understand the changes in syphilis serology after regular treatment. Methods： Patients with clinical evidence and credible medical history of syphilis were treated regularly. Their serologic tests were followed for two years. Results： At the end of half a year, 22.95% of patients had a negative USR but 26.23% remained positive even after 2 years. More than 3% of patients had a negative FTA-ABS result. These patients tended to be under 40 with a disease course of less than 2 years. Conclusion： The resolution rate was high for patients who were young, had a shorter course of disease and reacted strongly to the infection. In patients older than 40 with a long course of disease, the resolution rate was low.

Endoscopic diagnosis of gastrointestinal graft-versus-host disease

AIM:To evaluate the diagnostic value of endoscopy in patients with gastrointestinal graft-versus-host disease (GI GVHD). METHODS:We identified 8 patients with GI GVHD following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell trans-plantation (HSCT). GVHD was defined histologically as the presence of gland apoptosis, not explained by other inflammatory or infectious etiologies. RESULTS:The symptoms of GI GVHD included anorexia, nausea, vomiting, watery diarrhea, abdominal pain, GI bleeding, etc. Upper endoscopic appearance varied from subtle mucosal edema, hyperemia, erythema to obvious erosion. Colonoscopic examination showed diffuse edema, hyperemia, patchy erosion, scattered ulcer, sloughing and active bleeding. Histological changes in GI GVHD included apoptosis of crypt epithelial cells, dropout of crypts, and lymphocytic infiltration in epithelium and lamina propria. The involvement of stomach and rectocolon varied from diffuse to focal. CONCLUSION:Endoscopy may play a significant role in early diagnosis of GI GVHD patients following allogeneic HSCT, and histologic examination of gastrointestinal biopsies is needed to confirm the final diagnosis.

Wireless capsule endoscopy

Wireless capsule endoscopy is a new technique that allows complete exploration of the small bowel without exlemal wires. Its role has been analyzed in many small bowel diseases such as obscure gastrointestinal bleeding, Crohn＇s disease and gastrointestinal polyposis syndromes with promising results. Studies on other pathologies （i.e. small bowel tumour, celiac disease） are under evaluation to define the role of this technique.

Mortality associated with gastrointestinal bleeding in children: A retrospective cohort study

To determine the clinical characteristics of children with gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB) who died during the course of their admission.METHODSWe interrogated the Pediatric Hospital Information System database, including International Classification of Diseases, Current Procedural Terminology and Clinical Transaction Classification coding from 47 pediatric tertiary centers extracting the population of patients (1-21 years of age) admitted (inpatient or observation) with acute, upper or indeterminate GIB (1/2007-9/2015). Descriptive statistics, unadjusted univariate and adjusted multivariate analysis of the associations between patient characteristics and treatment course with mortality was performed with mortality as primary and endoscopy a secondary outcome of interest. All analyses were performed using the R statistical package, v.3.2.3.RESULTSThe population with GIB was 19528; 54.6% were male, overall mortality was 2.07%; (0.37% in patients with the principal diagnosis of GIB). When considering only the mortalities in which GIB was the principal diagnosis, 48% (12 of 25 principal diagnosis GIB mortalities) died within the first 3 d of admission, whereas 19.8% of secondary diagnosis GIB patients died with 3 d of admission. Patients who died were more likely to have received octreotide (19.8% c.f. 4.04%) but tended to have not received proton pump inhibitor therapy in the first 48 h, and far less likely to have undergone endoscopy during their admission (OR = 0.489, P < 0.0001). Chronic liver disease associated with a greater likelihood of endoscopy. Mortalities were significantly more likely to have multiple complex chronic conditions.CONCLUSIONGIB associated mortality in children is highest within 7 d of admission. Multiple comorbidities are a risk factor whereas early endoscopy during the admission is protective.

Role of echo Doppler ultrasonography in the evaluation of postprandial hyperemia in cirrhotic patients

AIM: To assess the role of echo-Doppler ultrasonography in postprandial hyperemia in cirrhotic patients by comparing the results with the hepatic vein catheterization technique.METHODS: Patients with cirrhosis, admitted to the portal hemodynamic laboratory were included into the study. After an overnight fast, echo-Doppler ultrasonography (basal and 30 min after a standard meal) and hemodynamic studies by hepatic vein catheterization (basal, 15 min and 30 min after a standard meal) were performed. Ensure Plus (Abbot Laboratories, North Chicago, IL) was used as the standard liquid meal. Correlation analysis of the echo-Doppler and hepatic vein catheterization measurements were done for the basal and postprandial periods.RESULTS: Eleven patients with cirrhosis (5 Child A, 4 Child B, 2 Child C) were enrolled into the study. After the standard meal, 8 of the 11 patients showed postprandial hyperemia with increase in portal blood flow, portal blood velocity and hepatic venous pressure gradient. Hepatic venous pressure gradient in the postprandial period correlated positively with postprandial portal blood velocity (r = 0.8, P < 0.05) and correlated inversely with postprandial superior mesenteric artery pulsatility index (r = -1, P < 0.01).CONCLUSION: Postprandial hyperemia can be efficiently measured by echo-Doppler ultrasonography and the results are comparable to those obtained with the hemodynamic studies.

Combination of thrombolytic therapy and angioplastic stent insertion in a patient with Budd-Chiari syndrome

A 31-year-old female who had well-established polycythemia vera one year before, presented with the sudden onset. She had severe ascites and hepatic encephalopathy 12 d prior to admission. Real-time ultrasonography revealed a supra hepatic thrombosis extending toward the inferior vena cava （IVC）. Thrombolytic therapy with systemic streptokinase （250000 IU loading ＋ 100000 IU/h infusion） was started. At the end of 72 h infusion, the patient＇s general condition improved. A color Doppler ultrasonography then showed complete and partial resolution of the thrombosis in the supra hepatic vein and IVC, respectively. Despite this good response, 12 d later, the symptoms recurred. Venography detected complete obstruction of the IVC. Percutanous balloon angioplasty with stent insertion was performed successfully and the patient was discharged without any evidence of liver disease. A combination of systemic streptokinase and radiological intervention was effective in our patient.

DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF INSIDIOUS RECURRENT SMALL INTESTINAL HEMORRHAGE

Objective. To improve the localized diagnosis of insidious recurrent small intestinal hemorrhage. Methods. This retrospective analysis include 64 cases of such diseases,which were admitted from 1988 to 1998 to our hospital. Result. Ultrasonography, CT, small bowel pneumobariumgraphy, diluted barium enema,isotopic examination, DSA and intraoperative small-bowel endoscopy were used for diagnosis of hemorrhagic site, and 37 cases got a definite location before operation,while 10 cases were confirmed the diagnosis during the operation.Forty-seven cases were treated surgically, while the other 17 cases had non-surgical treatment.Of the 47 cases,39 cases underwent partial enterectomy, 5 cases had suture and ligature of vascular deformity, 2 cases had Whipple’s operation, and one patient had ectomy of the end of ileum and right colon. Conclusion. DSA, Isotopic examination and intraoperative enteroscopy are of considerable importance for the location judgement of recurrent small intestinal hemorrhage.

N-acetyl cysteine therapy in acute viral hepatitis

AIM: To investigate the effect of N-acetyl cysteine (NAC)on acute viral hepatitis (AVH).METHODS: We administered 200 mg oral NAC three times daily (600 mg/day) to the study group and placebo capsules to the control group. All patients were hospitalized and diagnosed as AVH. Blood total and direct bilirubin, ALT, AST,alkaline phosphatese, albumin and globulin levels of each patient were measured twice weekly until total bilirubin level dropped under 2 mg/dl, ALT level under 100 U/L, follow up was continued and then the patients were discharged.RESULTS: A total of 41(13 female and 28 male) AVH patients were included in our study. The period for normalization of ALT and total bilirubin in the study group was 19.7±6.9 days and 13.7±8.5 days respectively. In the control group it was 20.4±6.5 days and 16.9±7.8 days respectively (P＞0.05).CONCLUSION: NAC administration effected neither the time necessary for normalization of ALT and total bilirubin values nor duration of hospitalization, so we could not suggest NAC for the treatment of icteric AVH cases. However, our results have shown that this drug is not harmful to patients with AVH.

COLOR DOPPLER ULTRASONOGRAPHY APPEARANCES OF RENAL VEIN THROMBOSIS AND ITS DIAGNOSTIC VALUE

Objective To evaluate color Doppler ultrasonography (CDU) appearances of renal vein thrombosis (RVT) and its diagnostic value.Methods Ten patients with RVT were analyzed retrospectively. Renal structure, distributions of intrarenal flow signals, echogenicity, and flow fullness in main renal veins were observed with CDU. Resistance index (RI) was recorded from the waveforms of segmental or interlobar renal artery.Results Ten kidneys in nine patients were confirmed to have thrombus within the main renal veins, and one patient was confirmed to have thrombus within the small intrarenal veins. The appearances of the main renal vein thrombosis included full of solid echogenicity or strip echogenicity and complete or partial filling defect within the main renal veins, and absent or a few intrarenal venous flow signals in 70% of kidneys involved. The appearances of intrarenal vein thrombosis included obscure renal structure and no venous flow signal within the involved part of the kidneys. Reverse diastolic flow in the intrarenal artery had only a sensitivity of 36% (4/11); in other 7 kidneys without intrarenal arterial reverse diastolic flow, increased RI (mean, 0.84; range, 0.74-0.96) was found.Conclusion CDU is helpful for rapid clinical diagnosis and follow-up of RVT, and therefore can be the first imaging modality of choice for RVT.