Serum levels of ghrelin and obestatin in children with symptoms suggestive of delayed gastric emptying of unclear etiology.

Background: Ghrelin and obestatin are peptides of the gut-brain axis affecting appetite and gastrointestinal motility.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional, case-control study to determine pre- and postprandial serum levels of total ghrelin and obestatin along with gastric emptying scintigraphy in children with symptoms suggestive of delayed gastric emptying time (GET), not attributable to any identifiable cause.

Results: Twenty children with symptoms suggestive of delayed GET, of whom 9 had delayed GET, and 20 age-matched healthy children were enrolled.

Molecular diagnosis and management of hereditary angioedema in a Greek family.

Background: Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is an autosomal dominant disease characterized by recurrent angioedema episodes caused by a quantitative or functional defect of the plasma protein C1 esterase inhibitor (C1-INH). Relapsing skin swellings, abdominal pain attacks and upper airway obstruction constitute the typical clinical manifestations. The incidence and severity of angioedema attacks are highly variable among HAE patients.

Primary intramural fibroma of the left ventricle with a late apparent symptomatology.

We report a case of a 13-year-old girl who was admitted to the emergency department with syncope. She had been diagnosed in infancy with a large intramural fibroma of the left ventricle, but had been free of any clinical symptoms during the last decade. The patient underwent a thorough and detailed clinical and imaging study.