Publications by authors named "Batia Weiss"

Article Synopsis
  • Curcumin and Qing Dai (QD) are herbal treatments found effective for ulcerative colitis (UC) in children, used since 2016 in a combination called CurQD.
  • A study involving 30 pediatric patients showed significant improvements, with over 50% experiencing a substantial reduction in disease activity and fecal calprotectin levels during treatment.
  • Follow-up results indicated that while 33% experienced a flare-up, many regained remission or responded well to adjustments in their treatment regimen, suggesting CurQD is both effective and safe for managing mild to moderate UC.
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Background: Previous studies highlighted a more extensive phenotype for paediatric-onset than adult-onset inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, most lacked long-term follow-up, and some were conducted before the era of biologics.

Aims: The aim of this study is to compare disease characteristics and treatment exposures between paediatric-onset and adult-onset IBD.

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Objective: Data regarding Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)-associated mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma in children are lacking. We aimed to characterize the diagnosis, management, and outcome of H.

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  • Autoimmune gastritis (AIG) is a rare and chronic inflammatory disorder in children, which can lead to long-term complications like gastric cancer, but little is known about its natural progression in pediatric cases.
  • A study tracked 33 children diagnosed with AIG over a period of more than two decades, finding that a significant number (66.7%) had specific antibodies and that iron deficiency anemia was the most common symptom (75%).
  • The study emphasizes the need for monitoring due to high rates of metaplasia (33% in follow-ups) and a reported case of a type 1 gastric neuroendocrine tumor, indicating that AIG needs careful surveillance even in the absence of H. pylori infection.
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Purpose: Rett syndrome is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder associated with methyl CpG binding protein 2 (MECP2) gene mutations. We aimed to characterize the long-term nutritional and gastrointestinal course of Rett syndrome in a large national patient population.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients followed during 1991-2021 at a national center for Rett syndrome.

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Umbilical venous catheters are commonly inserted in critically ill newborns and can lead to severe complications when misplaced. We report a preterm female with a prenatal diagnosis of duodenal atresia who presented 2 days after the surgical repair with abdominal distension, hemodynamic instability, elevated liver enzymes with severe cholestatic jaundice, and a hepatic collection on abdominal sonography. An urgent explorative laparotomy demonstrated a large amount of white, milky-appearing fluid in the abdominal cavity.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the characteristics and natural history of primary sclerosing cholangitis related to inflammatory bowel disease (PSC-IBD) diagnosed before age 6, referred to as very early onset IBD (VEO-IBD) compared to those diagnosed later.
  • A total of 69 children were analyzed, finding that while most had ulcerative colitis, the VEO-PSC-IBD group had a higher incidence of PSC/autoimmune hepatitis overlap syndrome.
  • Results suggest that VEO-PSC-IBD has similar initial characteristics to later-onset PSC-IBD but presents with a milder disease course, particularly regarding biliary complications.
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Article Synopsis
  • - Ustekinumab is a monoclonal antibody used to treat Crohn's disease, with about 50% of patients achieving clinical remission after one year; the study aimed to find predictors of response to this treatment by analyzing blood samples before initiation.
  • - RNA from blood samples of 36 adults with Crohn's was sequenced, identifying 22 responders and 14 nonresponders, but no significant gene expression signature was found between the two groups after correcting for false discovery rates.
  • - Despite the lack of major differences in gene expression, nonresponders showed an increased inflammatory response with certain cytokine and chemokine receptor pathways, suggesting that further research with a larger sample is needed for validation.
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Background And Aims: Thiopurines are an established treatment for pediatric ulcerative colitis (UC). However, data regarding safety and efficacy are lacking. We aimed to determine short and long-term outcome following thiopurines use in children with UC.

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Objective: Congenital intrahepatic portosystemic shunts (IHPSS) are rare vascular malformations resulting in blood bypassing the liver to the systemic circulation. Previous studies included symptomatic patients diagnosed postnatally, but the outcome of IHPSS diagnosed prenatally is rarely reported. We present a cohort of children prenatally diagnosed with IHPSS and report their natural course and outcome.

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Purpose: To date, there is no systematic method to quantify the medical burden of individuals with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11.2DS).

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Article Synopsis
  • Ulcerative proctitis (UP) is a rare form of ulcerative colitis in children, with the study analyzing clinical features and outcomes of 196 diagnosed patients aged under 18 from 2016 to 2020.
  • Most patients presented with symptoms like bloody stools and abdominal pain, and the study found that higher initial disease activity scores (PUCAI) were linked to worse outcomes, including the need for more aggressive treatments.
  • By the end of the study, nearly half of the patients showed disease progression, and only a small percentage required colectomy, highlighting the challenges in managing UP in pediatric patients.
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Objective And Aim: Infantile-onset inflammatory bowel disease (IO-IBD), defined as IBD diagnosed at age 2 years or younger, tends to be more severe and refractory to conventional treatment than IBD diagnosed at a later age. However, data about IO-IBD and its long-term follow up are limited. We thus aimed to evaluate the presentation and long-term outcomes of patients with IO-IBD in a retrospective multicenter study.

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Objective: The measure of serum proteome in the preclinical state of Crohn's disease (CD) may provide insight into biological pathways involved in CD pathogenesis. We aimed to assess associations of serum proteins with future CD onset and with other biomarkers predicting CD risk in a healthy at-risk cohort.

Design: In a nested case-control study within the Crohn's and Colitis Canada Genetics Environment Microbial Project (CCC-GEM) cohort, which prospectively follows healthy first-degree relatives (FDRs), subjects who developed CD (n=71) were matched with four FDRs remaining healthy (n=284).

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Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic relapsing-remitting inflammatory disorder of the gastrointestinal tract that is characterized by altered innate and adaptive immune function. Although massively parallel sequencing studies of the T cell receptor repertoire identified oligoclonal expansion of unique clones, much less is known about the B cell receptor (BCR) repertoire in CD. Here, we present a novel BCR repertoire sequencing data set from ileal biopsies from pediatric patients with CD and controls, and identify CD-specific somatic hypermutation (SHM) patterns, revealed by a machine learning (ML) algorithm trained on BCR repertoire sequences.

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Background: Scarce data are available on the use of vedolizumab in children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We aimed to evaluate the safety, effectiveness, and dosing of vedolizumab to induce remission of IBD.

Methods: VEDOKIDS was a paediatric, multicentre, prospective cohort study done in 17 centres in six countries.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to evaluate the immune response in infants exposed to anti-TNFα or azathioprine due to their mothers' inflammatory bowel disease, focusing on T and B cell distribution and function.
  • Conducted from 2014 to 2017, the research involved measuring anti-TNFα levels in cord blood and analyzing T-cell function and immunoglobulin levels in infants at 3 and 12 months.
  • Findings indicated that infants exposed to anti-TNFα had normal immune responses, with adequate B-cell counts and no severe infections, but further research with untreated controls is necessary for confirmation.
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Objectives: Infants with non-IgE-mediated food allergies are often referred to gastroenterologists or immunologists. We hypothesized that there are practice variations between these disciplines in the diagnosis and management of such infants.

Methods: A computerized questionnaire was distributed between pediatric gastroenterologists and immunologists.

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Objectives: The glucagon-like peptide-2 analog Teduglutide has been shown to enhance intestinal absorption and decrease parenteral nutrition (PN) requirements in short bowel syndrome (SBS). As data in children is limited, we evaluated nationwide real-life experience and treatment outcome in children with SBS.

Methods: Longitudinal data of children treated with Teduglutide for ≥3 months was collected.

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Background: Higher infliximab trough levels (TLs) correlate with better clinical, inflammatory, and endoscopic outcomes among inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients. Although standard scheduled infliximab therapy regimen consists of infusions at pre-defined time-points (weeks 0, 2, 6, and every 8 weeks), short-period deviations from therapeutic schedule are common in 'real life', but the pharmacokinetic impact of these deviations has not been explored. In this study, we aim to determine whether short-period deviations from infusion schedule affect infliximab-TL.

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Avoidance of fasting and regular ingestion of uncooked-cornstarch have long been the mainstay dietary treatment of Glycogen Storage Disease type Ia (GSD-Ia). However, GSD-Ia patients who despite optimal dietary treatment show poor glycemic control and are intolerant to cornstarch, present a complex clinical challenge. We pursued Whole Exome Sequencing (WES) in three such unrelated patients, to both confirm a molecular diagnosis of GSD-Ia, and seek additional variants in other genes (e.

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Background/objectives: The current treatment goal for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is achievement of mucosal healing (MH). While established with biologic or azathioprine (AZA) therapies, the data on MH with methotrexate (MTX( treatment is scarce. We aimed to compare MH rate as reflected by FC in children with Crohn's disease (CD) treated with either MTX or thiopurines monotherapy.

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Background: Adequate dietary habits and physical activity during childhood and adolescence may promote growth and cognitive development and contribute to the prevention of chronic disease in later life. School is considered an important social environment that can promote healthy eating habits and life-style changes.

Objectives: To evaluate the effects of a school-based intervention on nutritional knowledge, eating habits, and physical activity of adolescents.

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