Publications by authors named "Ioannis Koliarakis"

Gastrointestinal (GI) cancers, such as colorectal and gastric cancers, pose significant global health challenges due to their high rates of incidence and mortality. Even with advancements in treatment and early detection, many patients still face poor outcomes, highlighting the critical need for new biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Telomere length (TL) and telomerase activity (TA) have gained attention in this context.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - Phenol/croton oil is a powerful chemical peel used for deep skin resurfacing, promoting skin renewal, but its risks and effectiveness have not been widely researched.
  • - A study involving 64 patients treated from 2014 to 2023 showed significant improvements in wrinkles and acne scars, with successful treatment of seborrheic keratosis while highlighting the mild and reversible nature of any side effects.
  • - Despite its efficacy in skin rejuvenation, the use of phenol/croton oil should be approached with caution due to possible complications associated with the procedure.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Intestinal dysbiosis is a major contributor to colorectal cancer (CRC) development, leading to bacterial translocation into the bloodstream. This study aimed to evaluate the presence of circulated bacterial DNA (cbDNA) in CRC patients ( = 75) and healthy individuals ( = 25). DNA extracted from peripheral blood was analyzed using PCR, with specific primers targeting rRNA, (), and ().

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study aimed to investigate the anatomy of the spinal accessory nerve (SAN) in the posterior cervical triangle, especially in relation to adjacent anatomical landmarks, along with a systematic review of the current literature with a meta-analysis of the data. Overall, 22 cadaveric and three prospective intraoperative studies, with a total of 1346 heminecks, were included in the analysis. The major landmarks relevant to the entry of the SAN at the posterior border of the SCM muscle (PBSCM) were found to be the mastoid apex, the great auricular point (GAP), the nerve point (NP), and the point where the PBSCM meets the upper border of the clavicle.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The ilioinguinal, iliohypogastric, genitofemoral, obturator, and pudendal nerves are the major sensory nerves that may be involved in chronic groin and genital pain with a significant impact on the quality of life of patients. The diagnosis remains clinical, and US-guided diagnostic injections using an anesthetic may aid in confirming the clinical suspicion. The anatomy of the peripheral nerves can be successfully studied using imaging.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To describe the cervical vagus nerve (CVN) topography at the thyroid lobe (TL) level using high-resolution ultrasound and to investigate the possible association with anthropometric data, TL size, and thyroid disease.

Methods: We prospectively examined 550 CVNs in 275 (205 female, 70 male) individuals with normal thyroid (53/275, 19.3%), multinodular disease (167/275, 60.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The knowledge of Anatomy during the Ottoman domination in Greece has not been widely studied. Medical knowledge of the time can be retrieved from folk and erudite books called Iatrosophia. The majority of these books focused on empirical diagnostics and therapeutics.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The intestinal microbiota consists of numerous microbial species that collectively interact with the host, playing a crucial role in health and disease. Colorectal cancer is well-known to be related to dysbiotic alterations in intestinal microbiota. It is evident that the microbiota is significantly affected by colorectal surgery in combination with the various perioperative interventions, mainly mechanical bowel preparation and antibiotic prophylaxis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The large intestine, part of the gastrointestinal tract (GI), is composed of all three germ layers, namely the endoderm, the mesoderm and the ectoderm, forming the epithelium, the smooth muscle layers and the enteric nervous system, respectively. Since gastrulation, these layers develop simultaneously during embryogenesis, signaling to each other continuously until adult age. Two invaginations, the anterior intestinal portal (AIP) and the caudal/posterior intestinal portal (CIP), elongate and fuse, creating the primitive gut tube, which is then patterned along the antero‑posterior (AP) axis and the radial (RAD) axis in the context of left‑right (LR) asymmetry.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The purpose of the present study was two-fold: First to review the epidemiological aspects of the experience on the surgical outcomes via laparotomy or laparoscopy, as regards endometriosis from two different academic institutions and, second, to illustrate potential differences in two different geographical areas, New Haven (US) and Greece. This retrospective study included 1,200 patients (15-80 years of age) treated via laparotomy or laparoscopy, at two different institutions, for endometriosis, between 1990 and 2017. Data were collected and analyzed from medical and pathological reports.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - The human body and its microbiota exist in a mutually beneficial relationship, playing key roles in immunity, pathogen defense, and metabolism, which helps maintain balance (homeostasis).
  • - Both the mouth and colon have distinct but populous microbiotas; oral bacteria can migrate to the colon, especially during conditions like periodontitis, leading to harmful effects.
  • - The arrival of oral pathogens in the colon can disrupt the local microbiota and trigger immune and inflammatory responses, potentially leading to colorectal cancer (CRC), highlighting the need for more research on these interactions for prevention and treatment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Human populations are chronically exposed to mixtures of toxic chemicals. Predicting the health effects of these mixtures require a large amount of information on the mode of action of their components. Xenobiotic metabolism by bacteria inhabiting the gastrointestinal tract has a major influence on human health.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hyperprolactinemia (HPrl) is considered as a rare endocrinopathy in childhood. In children and adolescent girls, there are three major categories of HPrl causes; physiological, pathological and iatrogenic. Through hypogonadotropic hypogonadism, prolactin hypersecretion and production leads to the typical functional syndrome which is observed in female children and adolescents; delayed puberty, primary or secondary amenorrhea and/or galactorrhea.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Normal-tension glaucoma (NTG) is a multifactorial optic neuropathy which, similar to open-angle glaucomas, is characterized by progressive retinal ganglion cell death and glaucomatous visual field loss. The major distinction of NTG from open-angle glaucomas is that the intraocular pressure (IOP) does not exceed the normal range. Missing the major risk factor and target of therapy, the elevated IOP, NTG poses a clinical challenge.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Colon holds a complex microbial community, which is crucial for maintaining homeostasis and regulating metabolic functions, supporting the intestinal barrier and controlling immune responses. Previous studies have supported a link between intestinal microbiota and colorectal cancer (CRC). Based on these fndings, the present review analyzed the numerous interactions that occur between microbiota and CRC, starting from the role of intestinal microbiota in colonic homoeostasis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF