Quick and easy assessment of sarcopenia in cirrhosis: Can ultrasound be the solution?

Cirrhosis is frequently associated with sarcopenia, with reported rates of over 80% in patients with decompensated alcohol-related liver disease. Sarcopenia negatively impacts the prognosis of cirrhotic patients and affects the response to treatment of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). For these reasons, identifying an easy-to-perform method to assess sarcopenia in is a key element in the optimization of care in this patient population.

Liver Transplantation in People Living with HIV: Still an Experimental Procedure or Standard of Care?

Liver transplantation (LT) is the only curative treatment for various liver diseases, including acute liver failure, end-stage liver disease, and selected unresectable liver malignancies. Combination antiretroviral therapy has improved outcomes for people living with HIV (PLWH), transforming the status of acquired immune deficiency syndrome from a fatal disease to a chronic and manageable condition. These powerful antiviral therapies have not only increased the number of HIV+ enlisted patients by improving their survival but also made the use of HIV+ organs a viable option.

Main factors influencing long-term outcomes of liver transplantation in 2022.

Liver transplant (LT) outcomes have markedly improved in the recent decades, even if long-term morbidity and mortality are still considerable. Most of late deaths are independent from graft function and different comorbidities, including complications of metabolic syndrome and neoplasms, seem to play a key role in determining long-term outcomes in LT recipients. This review discusses the main factors associated with late mortality and suggests possible strategies to improve long-term management and follow-up after liver transplantation.

Correlation of Ultrasound Scores with Endoscopic Activity in Crohn's Disease: A Prospective Exploratory Study.

Background And Aims: Intestinal ultrasound [IUS] is widely accepted as a reliable tool to monitor Crohn's disease [CD]. Several IUS scores have been proposed, but none has been formally accepted by international organizations. Our aim here was to compare the available scores regarding their correlation with endoscopic activity.

Outcomes and Follow-Up after Hepatitis C Eradication with Direct-Acting Antivirals.

Treatment of hepatitis C (HCV) has been revolutionized with the introduction of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs). Patients can be treated at more advanced stages of liver disease, with a growing number of cirrhotic patients achieving sustained virological response (SVR). Long-term outcomes for cured patients and the optimal follow-up care of patients after SVR are yet to be defined, because most studies on cirrhotic patients cured with DAAs have a short follow-up period.

Pregnancy outcomes in inflammatory bowel disease: Data from a large cohort survey.

Objectives: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) can affect young and reproductively active patients. Our aim was to analyze pregnancy outcomes in a large cohort of women with IBD.

Methods: All women with at least one pregnancy were given a questionnaire regarding the outcome of their pregnancy.

Higher volume growth rate is associated with development of worrisome features in patients with branch duct-intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms.

Background: Branch duct-intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (BD-IPMNs) are the most common pancreatic cystic tumours and have a low risk of malignant transformation. Current guidelines only evaluate cyst diameter as an important risk factor but it is not always easy to measure, especially when comparing different methods. On the other side, cyst volume is a new parameter with low inter-observer variability and is highly reproducible over time.

Understanding fatigue in primary biliary cholangitis: From pathophysiology to treatment perspectives.

Fatigue is considered one of the most frequent and debilitating symptoms in primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), affecting over 50% of PBC patients. One in five patients with PBC suffer from severe fatigue, which significantly impairs quality of life. Fatigue is made up of a central and a peripheral component, whose pathophysiology is still greatly unresolved.

MiRNA-Based Therapies for the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: What Are We Still Missing?

Micro-RNAs (miRNAs) are noncoding RNAs usually 24-30 nucleotides long that play a central role in epigenetic mechanisms of inflammatory diseases and cancers. Recently, several studies have assessed the involvement of miRNAs in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and colitis-associated neoplasia. Particularly, it has been shown that many members of miRNAs family are involved in the pathways of inflammation and fibrogenesis of IBD; therefore, their use as inflammatory and fibrosis biomarkers has been postulated.

Practical insights into chronic management of hepatic Wilson's disease.

Wilson's disease (WD) is a rare inherited disorder of human copper metabolism, with an estimated prevalence of 1:30000-1:50000 and a broad spectrum of hepatic and neuropsychiatric manifestations. In healthy individuals, the bile is the main route of elimination of copper. In WD patients, copper accumulates in the liver, it is released into the bloodstream, and is excreted in urine.

Cholangiocarcinoma as an Indication for Liver Transplantation in the Era of Transplant Oncology.

Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) arises from the biliary tract epithelium and accounts for 10-15% of all hepatobiliary malignancies. Depending on anatomic location, CCA is classified as intrahepatic (iCCA), perihilar (pCCA) and distal (dCCA). The best treatment option for pCCA is liver resection and when a radical oncological surgery is obtained, 5-year survival rate are around 20-40%.

Stevens-Johnson Syndrome and Herpes Simplex Type 1 Infection during Adalimumab Therapy for Crohn's Disease.

Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) is a severe mucocutaneous adverse drug reaction with a relatively high mortality rate. SJS is described during herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV1) infection and, rarely, even during adalimumab therapy. We report the case of a patient with Crohn's disease who developed SJS during an HSV1 infection and a contemporaneous anti-TNF therapy with adalimumab.

Increased Risk of Liver Cirrhosis during Azathioprine Therapy for Crohn's Disease.

Azathioprine is a cornerstone of the therapy of Crohn's disease. Unfortunately, infections and malignancies are relatively common adverse effects related to this drug; however, cirrhosis is exceptionally reported as a side effect. We report the case of a 49-year-old male patient with ileocolonic steno-penetrating Crohn's disease who developed hepatic cirrhosis while treated with azathioprine.

Hepatitis C virus eradication with direct-acting antiviral improves insulin resistance.

Sustained virological response (SVR) after interferon-based therapy is associated with improvement of insulin resistance (IR) in HCV-infected patients. Few data are available in the direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) era, especially in cirrhotic patients. We prospectively evaluated the long-term effect of DAAs on IR.

When and how should we perform a biopsy for HCC in patients with liver cirrhosis in 2018? A review.

The role of liver biopsy in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has changed over time. The diagnostic algorithm for this tumor is nowadays mainly based on radiological imaging, relegating histology to controversial cases, in which imaging techniques cannot establish a clear-cut diagnosis. This most commonly happens in small lesions, where biopsies frequently become mandatory, or in larger hypovascularized lesions.