Publications by authors named "Hoofien A"

Background: Giardia lamblia may be found incidentally during upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy, including when biopsies are taken for celiac disease (CeD) diagnosis. We aimed to study the clinical presentation and histopathology of G. lamblia and determine its association with CeD.

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Background: Accurate measurements of mucosal eosinophil concentrations in gastrointestinal tracts of healthy children are necessary to differentiate health and disease states in general, and better define eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases.

Study: We retrospectively reviewed gastrointestinal biopsies from children with macroscopically normal endoscopies, who, after a minimal follow-up of one year, were not diagnosed with any organic disease. Peak eosinophil concentrations and distributions were assessed from each segment of the gastrointestinal tract.

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Unlabelled: Celiac disease (CD) is increasingly diagnosed without endoscopy. As such, the need for accurate serological markers to aid in the diagnosis and follow-up of CD has increased. Intestinal fatty acid binding protein (I-FABP) is a cytosolic protein present in enterocytes, whose blood levels reflect mucosal damage in a reliable and quantifiable way.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the effectiveness of systemic steroids in treating esophageal strictures in children with Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE), aiming to clarify their role in treatment.* -
  • Twenty children with EoE and varying degrees of esophageal strictures were reviewed, with most showing significant clinical improvement after receiving systemic steroids, resulting in high rates of stricture resolution.* -
  • Minor side effects were noted, and the findings suggest that short-term systemic steroid use could reduce the need for mechanical dilation in these patients.*
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The span paradigm is commonly used to assess working memory (WM), predominantly through the visual and auditory routes and less often through the tactile modality. The current study aimed to validate the "Tactual Span", a new task developed to evaluate WM in the tactile modality. Participants were 140 healthy young adults, who performed the Tactual Span alongside span tasks in three additional modalities (auditory, visual, and visuospatial), as well as a selective attention task and a semantic verbal fluency task.

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Article Synopsis
  • Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) can worsen from inflammation to a more severe form if not properly treated, leading to long-term management recommendations.
  • A group of children with EoE successfully achieved both clinical and histologic remission by following elimination diets.
  • Remarkably, these children maintained sustained untreated remission even after reintroducing all previously eliminated food allergens.
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  • The study assesses the diagnosis and treatment practices of pediatric gastroenterologists for eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) in European children, highlighting a lack of real-world clinical data.
  • Retrospective analysis of 410 patients revealed that common triggering allergens for EoE include milk and eggs, with many patients not responding to proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) before treatment.
  • The findings indicate variations in treatment approaches, where a combination of dietary elimination and steroids was most common, and highlight challenges faced by physicians, such as patient refusal and limited endoscopy resources.
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Unlabelled: Leukemoid reaction (WBC > 30,000/μL) may indicate significant medical conditions, mostly infectious. Prompted by the lack of population-based data on the presentation, characteristics, and necessary workup in children with leukemoid reaction, we searched the database of a tertiary pediatric medical center for all children presented with at least one WBC count of ≥ 30,000/μL in 2009-2014. Demographic, clinical, and laboratory parameters were recorded.

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The β1-adrenergic receptor (β1AR) Arg389Gly polymorphism affects responses to orally administered β1AR antagonists (β-blockers) in vivo. However, the effect of this polymorphism on the early heart rate response to β-blockers has not been evaluated. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of the Arg389Gly polymorphism on the inhibition of exercise-induced tachycardia by esmolol, an ultra-short-acting intravenously administered β1AR antagonist.

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