Pros and Cons of the SeHCAT Test in Bile Acid Diarrhea: A More Appropriate Use of an Old Nuclear Medicine Technique.

Bile acid malabsorption (BAM) causing chronic diarrhea may be due to organic as well as functional disorders, and some of them were included under the general label of diarrheic-type irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D). The 75-selenium homocholic acid taurine (SeHCAT) test is a nuclear medicine investigation considered to be the gold standard for the diagnosis of bile acid malabsorption (BAM). Many studies demonstrate that it could be effective in the clinical workout of chronic diarrhea due to different conditions.

The complex interplay between gastrointestinal and psychiatric symptoms in irritable bowel syndrome: A longitudinal assessment.

Aims: The aims of this study were to better define the relationship between irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and psychiatric disorders and to examine the efficacy of paroxetine in the treatment of IBS patients.

Methods: One hundred fifty subjects with diagnosis of IBS (Roma III criteria) and relative sub-classification (constipated, diarrhea, and mixed) were assessed for psychopathological features and gastrointestinal symptoms using IBS Symptom Severity Score and were consecutively enrolled. Fifty patients assumed paroxetine for 16 weeks and were longitudinally evaluated.

Subthreshold Psychiatric Psychopathology in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders: Can It Be the Bridge between Gastroenterology and Psychiatry?

Background And Aims: Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGDs) are multifactorial disorders of the gut-brain interaction. This study investigated the prevalence of Axis I and spectrum disorders in patients with FGD and established the link between FGDs and psychopathological dimensions.

Methods: A total of 135 consecutive patients with FGD were enrolled.

Neuroendocrine Dysregulation in Irritable Bowel Syndrome Patients: A Pilot Study.

Background/aims: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a multifactorial disorder, involving dysregulation of brain-gut axis. Our aim was to evaluate the neuroendocrine activity in IBS.

Methods: Thirty IBS and 30 healthy volunteers were enrolled.

Predictors of survival in patients with established cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma treated with sorafenib.

Aim: To investigate in greater detail the efficacy and safety of sorafenib for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with established cirrhosis.

Methods: From October 2009 to July 2012 patients with an established diagnosis of cirrhosis and HCC treated with sorafenib were consecutively enrolled. According to the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) classification, patients were in the advanced stage (BCLC-C) or in the intermediate stage (BCLC-B) but unfit or unresponsive to other therapeutic strategies.