Xalnesiran with or without an Immunomodulator in Chronic Hepatitis B.

Background: Xalnesiran, a small interfering RNA molecule that targets a conserved region of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) genome and silences multiple HBV transcripts, may have efficacy, with or without an immunomodulator, in patients with chronic HBV infection.

Methods: We conducted a phase 2, multicenter, randomized, controlled, adaptive, open-label platform trial that included the evaluation of 48 weeks of treatment with xalnesiran at a dose of 100 mg (group 1), xalnesiran at a dose of 200 mg (group 2), xalnesiran at a dose of 200 mg plus 150 mg of ruzotolimod (group 3), xalnesiran at a dose of 200 mg plus 180 μg of pegylated interferon alfa-2a (group 4), or a nucleoside or nucleotide analogue (NA) alone (group 5) in participants with chronic HBV infection who had virologic suppression with NA therapy. The primary efficacy end point was hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) loss (HBsAg level, <0.

Magnetic resonance elastography is useful to determine the severity of liver fibrosis according to liver biopsy in post-fontan patients.

Objective: The reliability of various modalities for assessing and monitoring Fontan-associated liver disease compared to liver biopsy remains an intriguing subject of inquiry. Our objective was to assess the efficacy of multiple modalities in comparison to liver histology for evaluating liver fibrosis in post-Fontan patients.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study involving Fontan patients without known liver disease.

Imbalance of mitochondrial fusion in peripheral blood mononuclear cells is associated with liver fibrosis in patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis.

Mitochondrial dysfunction and inflammation contribute to the pathophysiology of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). This study aims to evaluate the potential association between mitochondrial dynamics and cell death markers from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and the presence of MASH with significant liver fibrosis among metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) patients. Consecutive patients undergoing bariatric surgery from January to December 2022 were included.

Efficacy and safety of pinaverium bromide as an add-on therapy in refractory dyspepsia: A randomized controlled trial.

Background And Aim: Functional dyspepsia (FD) remains a therapeutic challenge, and the efficacy of antispasmodic agents as adjunctive therapy is not well established. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of pinaverium bromide added to omeprazole in treating refractory FD.

Methods: We conducted a randomized, placebo-controlled trial in patients with refractory dyspepsia.

Efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetics of capsid assembly modulator linvencorvir plus standard of care in chronic hepatitis B patients.

Background/aims: Four-week treatment of linvencorvir (RO7049389) was generally safe and well tolerated, and showed anti-viral activity in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients. This study evaluated the efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetics of 48-week treatment with linvencorvir plus standard of care (SoC) in CHB patients.

Methods: This was a multicentre, non-randomized, non-controlled, open-label phase 2 study enrolling three cohorts: nucleos(t)ide analogue (NUC)-suppressed patients received linvencorvir plus NUC (Cohort A, n=32); treatment-naïve patients received linvencorvir plus NUC without (Cohort B, n=10) or with (Cohort C, n=30) pegylated interferon-α (Peg-IFN-α).

Secondary Iron Overload and the Liver: A Comprehensive Review.

Iron overload is a condition involving excessive iron deposit in various organs, the liver being the main target organ for iron deposition and overload which are associated with significant liver morbidity and mortality. Iron overload can be categorized into primary and secondary causes. Primary iron overload, so-called hereditary hemochromatosis, is a well-recognized disease with available standard treatment recommendations.

Regional Differences in Admissions and Treatment Outcomes for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients in Thailand.

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the commonest cancers in Thailand. We report the stage and survival of patients who were admitted under the public universal health fund (NHSO) covering 47 million people to determine if there were regional disparities in the treatment outcomes in the country.

Method: We used the 2009-2013 Nationwide Hospital Admission Data, Thailand.

Validation of prognostic scores predicting mortality in acute liver decompensation or acute-on-chronic liver failure: A Thailand multicenter study.

Background & Objectives: Cirrhosis patients with worsening of the liver function are defined as acute decompensation (AD) and those who develop extrahepatic organ failure are defined as acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). Both AD and ACLF have an extremely poor prognosis. However, information regarding prognostic predictors is still lacking in Asian populations.

Therapeutic vaccine BRII-179 restores HBV-specific immune responses in patients with chronic HBV in a phase Ib/IIa study.

Background & Aims: Functional cure of chronic HBV infection (CHB) without life-long treatment requires the restoration of defective HBV-specific humoral and cellular immunity. Therapeutic vaccines based on the major structural and non-structural proteins have been tested in patients with CHB but have shown scarce immunogenicity. BRII-179, also known as VBI-2601, is a novel formulation comprised of all 3 HBV surface envelope proteins (Pre-S1, Pre-S2, and S).

Randomised clinical trial: the effects of pregabalin vs placebo on functional dyspepsia.

Background: Currently, central neuromodulators are among the therapeutic options for the treatment of functional dyspepsia (FD). Pregabalin, a gabapentinoid, is a neuromodulator that could potentially improve visceral hypersensitivity in FD patients.

Aim: To assess the efficacy and safety of pregabalin for the treatment of FD METHODS: We performed a randomised placebo-controlled study including FD patients who did not respond to proton pump inhibitors.

The effects of dapagliflozin on hepatic and visceral fat in type 2 diabetes patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Background And Aim: Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors have shown excellent results in glucose control in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients, while also promoting weight loss. These mechanisms may be beneficial in the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Our study aims to investigate the effect of dapagliflozin on hepatic and visceral fat contents and related biochemical markers in T2DM with NAFLD patients.

Clinical Study of Single-Stranded Oligonucleotide RO7062931 in Healthy Volunteers and Patients With Chronic Hepatitis B.

Background And Aims: RO7062931 is an N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc)-conjugated single-stranded locked nucleic acid oligonucleotide complementary to HBV RNA. GalNAc conjugation targets the liver through the asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGPR). This two-part phase 1 study evaluated the safety, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of RO7062931 in healthy volunteers and patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) who were virologically suppressed.

Human fascioliasis presenting as liver abscess: clinical characteristics and management.

Background: Human fascioliasis, caused by the liver flukes F. hepatica, and F. gigantica, is a neglected tropical disease that causes health problems in many regions of the world.

Effects of Metformin on Hepatic Steatosis in Adults with Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and Diabetes: Insights from the Cellular to Patient Levels.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) patients with diabetes constitute a subgroup of patients with a high rate of liver-related complications. Currently, there are no specific drug recommendations for these patients. Metformin, a conventional insulin sensitizer agent, has been widely prescribed in patients with diabetes.

Efficacy and Safety of Clidinium/Chlordiazepoxide as an Add-on Therapy in Functional Dyspepsia: A Randomized, Controlled, Trial.

Background/aims: The treatment of refractory functional dyspepsia (FD) is a challenge. Clidinium/chlordiazepoxide is a combination of antispasmodic and anxiolytic drugs that has been used as an adjunct treatment for FD in clinical practice with limited supporting evidence of efficacy. The aim of the study is to assess the efficacy and safety of clidinium/chlordiazepoxide as an adjunct treatment to a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) in refractory dyspepsia.

Evaluation of aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index and fibrosis 4 scores for hepatic fibrosis assessment compared with transient elastography in chronic hepatitis C patients.

Background And Aim: Fibrotic stage (FS) assessment is essential in chronic hepatitis C treatment cascade. Liver stiffness measurement (LSM) using transient elastography (TE) is reliable and correlated with liver biopsy. However, TE may not be widely available.

Vitamin D-Binding protein Gene Polymorphism Predicts Pegylated Interferon-Related HBsAg Seroclearance in HBeAg-Negative Thai Chronic Hepatitis B Patients: A Multicentre Study.

Background: Vitamin D deficiency is related to poor clinical outcomes in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Methods: We aimed to investigate the association between the genetic variants in the vitamin D metabolic pathway and the response to pegylated interferon (Peg-IFN) therapy in patients with HBeAg-negative chronic HBV infection. One hundred seven patients treated with Peg-IFN for 48 weeks were selected from 13 specialty hospitals.

Risk of Liver Fibrosis in Hepatitis B Virus and HIV Coinfected Youths Receiving Tenofovir-Containing Antiretroviral Regimen.

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and HIV coinfection is associated with risk of progression to chronic liver disease. We assessed liver stiffness in HBV-HIV coinfected youths.

Methods: A cross-sectional study in HBV-HIV coinfected youths aged 18 to 25 years who received a tenofovir (TDF)-containing antiretroviral therapy regimen for >96 weeks.

Association of the S267F variant on NTCP gene and treatment response to pegylated interferon in patients with chronic hepatitis B: a multicentre study.

Background: Sodium taurocholate co-transporting polypeptide (NTCP) is a cell receptor for HBV. The S267F variant on the NTCP gene is inversely associated with the chronicity of HBV infection, progression to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in East Asian populations. The aim of this study was to determine whether the S267F variant was associated with response to pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN) in patients with chronic HBV infection.

Genetic variation in the vitamin D pathway CYP2R1 gene predicts sustained HBeAg seroconversion in chronic hepatitis B patients treated with pegylated interferon: A multicenter study.

Evidence of a role of vitamin D in the immune system is increasing. Low serum vitamin D is associated with increased hepatitis B virus replication. Genome-wide association study (GWAS) data has revealed a number of the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the vitamin D synthetic pathway that affect vitamin D functions.

Fluorescence in situ hybridization compared with conventional cytology for the diagnosis of malignant biliary tract strictures in Asian patients.

Background And Aims: Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) has improved the diagnostic performance of cytology for the evaluation of malignant biliary strictures in the United States and Europe. The utility of FISH for the diagnosis of biliary strictures in Asia is currently unknown. We aimed to compare the sensitivity of FISH and conventional cytology for the diagnosis of malignant biliary strictures in Thai patients.

Three-day versus five-day somatostatin infusion combination with endoscopic variceal ligation in the prevention of early rebleeding following acute variceal hemorrhage: A randomized controlled trial.

Aim: Combined pharmacological and endoscopic therapy is recommended for initial treatment of acute variceal bleeding (AVB). The optimal duration of therapy with a vasoactive agent is not well established. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of 3-day and 5-day somatostatin treatment in the prevention of early rebleeding after endoscopic variceal ligation (EVL).

Clinical features and prognostic factors for liver cancer from a referral center in northern Thailand.

Background: Primary liver cancer included hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), is the leading cancer with high mortality in Thailand. We aim to evaluate the overall survival and predictor of mortality in patients with HCC and CCA.

Material And Method: We reviewed medical records of 786 patients with liver mass between July 2007 and June 2010, 287 patients were HCC and 449 patients were CCA.