Granulocyte and monocyte adsorptive apheresis (GMA) in patients with inflammatory bowel disease: A useful therapeutic tool not just in ulcerative colitis but also in Crohn's disease.

Introduction: Granulocyte and monocyte adsorptive apheresis (GMA) removes neutrophils and monocytes from peripheral blood, preventing their incorporation into the inflamed tissue also influencing cytokine balance. Published therapeutic efficacy in ulcerative colitis (UC) is more consistent than in Crohn's disease (CD). We assessed clinical efficacy of GMA in UC and CD 4 weeks after last induction session, at 3 and 12 months, sustained remission and corticosteroid-free remission.

ERCP in patients 90 years of age and older.

Background: Biliary diseases represent particular diagnostic and therapeutic problems in elderly patients.

Methods: Patients 90 years of age or older who underwent ERCP from January 1993 to September 2001 were studied retrospectively.

Results: A total of 126 patients underwent 147 ERCP procedures (range 1-5 per patient).