A Rare Case of Paraesophageal Hernia Repair Complicated by Pancreatic Injury.

Esophageal hernias are anatomical defect that affects up to 50% of the population. While they may be asymptomatic, hernias may also result in reflux and dysphagia, among other symptoms. In such cases, hernia repair is warranted.

Telephone Reminders Improve Fecal Immunochemical Test Return Rates.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a structured telephone reminder system on completion rates of screening fecal immunochemical tests.

Methods: Fecal immunochemical test (FIT) return rates were compared among patients who received a telephone reminder after 14 days and those who did not receive a reminder.

Results: There was a significantly higher return rate among patients who received a telephone reminder.

An HIV-Positive Patient With Disseminated Histoplasmosis Complicated by Histoplasma Ileitis-Induced Small Bowel Obstruction.

A 43-year-old male has a medical history of Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) with no anti-retroviral therapy for six years prior to admission. He presented from an outside hospital with 40 lbs weight loss over one year, worsening abdominal pain, and odynophagia, with CT-confirmed small bowel obstruction (SBO) in the setting of untreated cytomegalovirus (CMV) ileitis. Treatment for both the untreated HIV and CMV ileitis was started during this hospitalization, and his hospital course was complicated by disseminated histoplasmosis in his lungs and GI tract, leading to stricture and a recurrent SBO.

Impact of Integrase Inhibition Compared With Nonnucleoside Inhibition on HIV Reservoirs in Lymphoid Tissues.

Background: HIV is produced in lymphoid tissues (LT) and stored on the follicular dendritic cell network in LT. When antiretroviral therapy is started, plasma viremia decays in 2 phases; the first within days of starting therapy and the second over weeks. Raltegravir (RAL), an integrase inhibitor, has been associated with only a single rapid phase of decay, and we speculated this may be due to higher intracellular concentration (IC) of RAL in LT.

Estrogen Enhances Linkage in the Vascular Endothelial Calmodulin Network via a Feedforward Mechanism at the G Protein-coupled Estrogen Receptor 1.

Estrogen exerts many effects on the vascular endothelium. Calmodulin (CaM) is the transducer of Ca(2+) signals and is a limiting factor in cardiovascular tissues. It is unknown whether and how estrogen modifies endothelial functions via the network of CaM-dependent proteins.

Inguinal lymph node and anorectal mucosal biopsies for human immunodeficiency virus research protocols in an emerging nation: patient outcomes and lessons learned.

Background: Lymph nodes and gut-associated lymphatic tissue are important reservoirs of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Little is known about these reservoirs in different geographic populations. We report the surgical outcomes of excisional lymph node and anorectal mucosal biopsies performed internationally and describe the lessons learned.

Lymphoid fibrosis occurs in long-term nonprogressors and persists with antiretroviral therapy but may be reversible with curative interventions.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) replication causes lymphoid tissue (LT) fibrosis, which causes CD4(+) T-cell depletion. It is unknown whether people who spontaneously control HIV replication have LT fibrosis. We measured LT fibrosis and CD4(+) T cells in 25 HIV controllers, 10 noncontrollers, 45 HIV-positive individuals receiving therapy, and 10 HIV-negative individuals.

The forkhead transcription factor, FOXP3: a critical role in male fertility in mice.

Fertility is dependent on the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. Each component of this axis is essential for normal reproductive function. Mice with a mutation in the forkhead transcription factor gene, Foxp3, exhibit autoimmunity and infertility.

The forkhead transcription factor, FOXP3, is required for normal pituitary gonadotropin expression in mice.

The hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis is central to normal reproductive function. This pathway begins with the release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone in systematic pulses by the hypothalamus. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone is bound by receptors on gonadotroph cells in the anterior pituitary gland and stimulates the synthesis and secretion of luteinizing hormone and, to some extent, follicle-stimulating hormone.