Publications by authors named "Helena Cortez-Pinto"

Background And Objectives: Endoscopic band ligation (EBL) plays a critical role in patients with clinically significant portal hypertension, as variceal eradication (VE) is essential to prevent further variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding (GI). The emergence of COVID-19 has led to a dramatic reduction in endoscopic activity. Our study aimed to evaluate the effect of COVID-19 on VE, GI, and 6-month mortality of patients treated with prophylactic EBL therapy.

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Background: Patients with Crohn's disease (CD) are at risk of progressing from inflammatory to stricturing and penetrating phenotypes. The influence of the depth of remission on the risk of progression has not been adequately evaluated.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study including surgically naïve CD patients with inflammatory phenotype evaluated concomitantly by magnetic resonance enterography and colonoscopy.

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Alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD), as highlighted in this narrative review, is a major public health concern, increasingly impacting global disease burden and premature mortality. In 2019, ALD accounted for the loss of 11 million life-years worldwide. The rising number of deaths and disability-adjusted life-years attributed to ALD, particularly pronounced in the United States, are alarming.

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Objective: Targeting bacterial translocation in cirrhosis is limited to antibiotics with risk of antimicrobial resistance. This study explored the therapeutic potential of a non-absorbable, gut-restricted, engineered carbon bead adsorbent, Yaq-001 in models of cirrhosis and acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) and, its safety and tolerability in a clinical trial in cirrhosis.

Design: Performance of Yaq-001 was evaluated .

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Article Synopsis
  • Excessive alcohol consumption is a significant global health issue, linked to liver disease and cancer-related deaths, often underestimated due to reliance on self-reported data.
  • The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test - version C is commonly used for screening, but objective assessment through alcohol biomarkers is recommended for patients with liver disease.
  • It is advised that all patients with alcohol-associated liver disease abstain from alcohol, as this can slow or reverse liver damage, while studies suggest that even small amounts of alcohol increase health risks, particularly in those with chronic liver conditions.
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Background And Aims: The beneficial effect of Hepatitis C virus (HCV) eradication by direct antiviral agents (DAAs) on liver fibrosis is well defined. Despite this, the impact of viral eradication in both hepatic and extra-hepatic metabolic features is underreached. This systematic review aimed to synthesize the evidence on the impact of HCV eradication by DAAs on liver steatosis, carotid atherosclerosis, glucidic impairment, dyslipidaemia, and weight gain.

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Article Synopsis
  • Artificial intelligence in digital pathology can effectively quantify histological findings and compare the evaluations of liver conditions like NASH between pathologists and machine learning models.
  • In a study involving 251 patients with NASH, both pathologists and machine learning models showed that a dosage of semaglutide 0.4 mg yielded significantly better results in achieving NASH resolution compared to placebo.
  • While both assessment methods detected improvements in liver health with semaglutide, the machine learning model identified a significant reduction in fibrosis that traditional pathologist assessments did not capture.
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Background: Increasing evidence supports the use of transmural remission as a treatment target in Crohn's disease (CD), but it is seldom achieved in clinical practice. Tight monitoring of inflammation using fecal calprotectin with reactive treatment escalation may potentially improve these results.

Aims: To evaluate if treatment escalation based on fecal calprotectin can improve the rates of transmural remission in CD.

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Background & Aims: Chronic liver disease (CLD) causes 1.8% of all deaths in Europe, many of them from liver cancer. We estimated the impact of several policy interventions in France, the Netherlands, and Romania.

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Background: Few patients can reach transmural remission in Crohn's disease (CD) with currently available therapies. Proactive optimization of infliximab (IFX) based on trough levels may potentially improve these results.

Methods: Retrospective cohort study including consecutive CD patients starting treatment with IFX.

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Background And Aims: Fatty liver disease is a major public health threat due to its very high prevalence and related morbidity and mortality. Focused and dedicated interventions are urgently needed to target disease prevention, treatment, and care.

Approach And Results: We developed an aligned, prioritized action agenda for the global fatty liver disease community of practice.

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The principal limitations of the terms NAFLD and NASH are the reliance on exclusionary confounder terms and the use of potentially stigmatising language. This study set out to determine if content experts and patient advocates were in favor of a change in nomenclature and/or definition. A modified Delphi process was led by three large pan-national liver associations.

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The principal limitations of the terms NAFLD and NASH are the reliance on exclusionary confounder terms and the use of potentially stigmatising language. This study set out to determine if content experts and patient advocates were in favour of a change in nomenclature and/or definition. A modified Delphi process was led by three large pan-national liver associations.

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The principal limitations of the terms NAFLD and NASH are the reliance on exclusionary confounder terms and the use of potentially stigmatising language. This study set out to determine if content experts and patient advocates were in favor of a change in nomenclature and/or definition. A modified Delphi process was led by three large pan-national liver associations.

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Background & Aims: An estimated 38% of adults worldwide have non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). From individual impacts to widespread public health and economic consequences, the implications of this disease are profound. This study aimed to develop an aligned, prioritised fatty liver disease research agenda for the global health community.

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Background: With the rising global prevalence of fatty liver disease related to metabolic dysfunction, the association of this common liver condition with chronic kidney disease (CKD) has become increasingly evident. In 2020, the more inclusive term metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) was proposed to replace the term non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The observed association between MAFLD and CKD and our understanding that CKD can be a consequence of underlying metabolic dysfunction support the notion that individuals with MAFLD are at higher risk of having and developing CKD compared with those without MAFLD.

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Article Synopsis
  • - MAFLD (metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease) is a common condition affecting about 25-30% of people worldwide and is linked to increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, often underestimated by cardiologists.
  • - An international panel of 52 experts conducted a Delphi survey to create consensus statements on the connection between MAFLD and CVD, covering topics like epidemiology, mechanisms, screening, and management.
  • - The panel highlighted the significance of recognizing the cardiovascular risks associated with MAFLD, aiming to raise awareness and identify future research directions.
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Purpose: Theory-based interventions aimed at promoting health behavior change in cancer survivors seem to be effective but remain scarce. More information on intervention features is also needed. This review aimed to synthesize the evidence from randomized controlled trials evaluating the efficacy of theory-based interventions (and its features) on physical activity (PA) and/or diet behaviors in cancer survivors.

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Background And Aims: Detecting NASH remains challenging, while at-risk NASH (steatohepatitis and F≥ 2) tends to progress and is of interest for drug development and clinical application. We developed prediction models by supervised machine learning techniques, with clinical data and biomarkers to stage and grade patients with NAFLD.

Approach And Results: Learning data were collected in the Liver Investigation: Testing Marker Utility in Steatohepatitis metacohort (966 biopsy-proven NAFLD adults), staged and graded according to NASH CRN.

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Background: The reference standard for detecting non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and staging fibrosis-liver biopsy-is invasive and resource intensive. Non-invasive biomarkers are urgently needed, but few studies have compared these biomarkers in a single cohort. As part of the Liver Investigation: Testing Marker Utility in Steatohepatitis (LITMUS) project, we aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of 17 biomarkers and multimarker scores in detecting NASH and clinically significant fibrosis in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and identify their optimal cutoffs as screening tests in clinical trial recruitment.

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Diagnosis of drug-induced liver injury (DILI) and its distinction from other liver diseases are significant challenges in drug development and clinical practice. Here, we identify, confirm, and replicate the biomarker performance characteristics of candidate proteins in patients with DILI at onset (DO; n = 133) and follow-up (n = 120), acute non-DILI at onset (NDO; n = 63) and follow-up (n = 42), and healthy volunteers (HV; n = 104). Area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for cytoplasmic aconitate hydratase, argininosuccinate synthase, carbamoylphosphate synthase, fumarylacetoacetase, fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase 1 (FBP1) across cohorts achieved near complete separation (range: 0.

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Article Synopsis
  • * A study tested 357 CLD patients and 132 healthy individuals, measuring different antibody levels before and after vaccination, finding that those with cirrhosis had particularly low responses.
  • * The results indicate that while certain factors like age and cirrhosis affect vaccine response, no significant differences in infection rates or overall vaccine efficacy were found between CLD patients and healthy controls.
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Introduction: Evidence supporting transmural remission (TR) as a long-term treatment target in Crohn's disease (CD) is still unavailable. Less stringent but more reachable targets such as isolated endoscopic (IER) or radiologic remission (IRR) may also be acceptable options in the long-term.

Methods: Multicenter retrospective study including 404 CD patients evaluated by magnetic resonance enterography and colonoscopy.

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