Detection of infection mimicking Crohn's disease using video capsule endoscopy.

Capsule endoscopy was used to detect intestinal infection in a 19-year-old man. The patient was initially believed to have Crohn's disease due to a notable family history of the disease. Capsule endoscopy is a valuable tool for diagnosing tapeworm infection even when Crohn's disease is suspected.

Retrospective study of the associations between hepatitis C virus infection and metabolic factors.

Aim: To evaluate the bidirectional association between metabolic syndrome (MS) components and antiviral treatment response for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study included 119 HCV + patients treated with pegylated-interferon-α and ribavirin. Metabolic characteristics and laboratory data were collected from medical records.

[THE COMBINED LAPAROSCOPIC AND ENDOSCOPIC TREATMENT FOR CONCOMITANT GALLSTONES AND COMMON BILE DUCT STONES: TWO STAGE OR SINGLE STAGE MANAGEMENT?].

Common bile duct stones occur in 3%-33% of patients suffering from gallbladder stones. Concurrent gallbladder and common bile duct stones should be treated due to the risk of life-threatening complications such as pancreatitis and cholangitis. There is no consensus regarding the optimal management of common bite duct stones associated with cho[elithiasis.

[ASYMPTOMATIC ADULT RETROGASTRIC BRONCHOGENIC CYST: DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT CONSIDERATION BY ENDOSCOPIC ULTRASOUND FINE NEEDLE ASPIRATION (EUS-FNA)].

Background: Adult bronchogenic cysts are rare. Retrogastric bronchogenic cysts are even rarer with only over 30 cases being reported in the English literature. These foregut cysts can be confused with cystic tumors.

Oral administration of non-absorbable delayed release 6-mercaptopurine is locally active in the gut, exerts a systemic immune effect and alleviates Crohn's disease with low rate of side effects: results of double blind Phase II clinical trial.

Therapy for Crohn's disease (CD) with thiopurines is limited by systemic side effects. A novel formulation of fixed-dose, delayed-release 6-mercaptopurine (DR-6MP) was developed, with local effect on the gut immune system and minimal absorption. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of DR-6MP in patients with moderately severe CD compared to systemically delivered 6-mercaptopurine (Purinethol).

Primary effusion lymphoma-like lymphoma in a patient with inflammatory bowel disease.

A 77-year-old man with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and who was treated with anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF), 6-mercaptopurine and corticosteroids, presented with primary effusion lymphoma-like lymphoma (PEL-like lymphoma) with massive ascites. The patient's clinical course was complicated by acute renal insufficiency and hypotension, which led to death within 2 wk. In general, patients with IBD may have an increased risk for development of lymphoma, which is frequently associated with immunosuppressive and/or anti-TNF antibody therapies.

Diagnostic challenges of Wilson's disease presenting as acute pancreatitis, cholangitis, and jaundice.

Wilson's disease is a rare disorder of copper transport in hepatic cells, and may present as cholestatic liver disease; pancreatitis and cholangitis are rarely associated with Wilsons's disease. Moreover, cases of Wilson's disease presenting as pigmented gallstone pancreatitis have not been reported in the literature. In the present report, we describe a case of a 37-year-old man who was admitted with jaundice and abdominal pain.

Pylephlebitis due to perforated appendicitis in a teenager.

Pylephlebitis, a septic thrombophlebitis of the portal vein, is a life-threatening complication of intraabdominal infections, commonly associated with acute appendicitis in children, and diverticulitis in adults. A 13-year-old boy was admitted for high fever and jaundice. On the fifth day of hospitalization, ultrasound Doppler flow and Computer Tomography scan studies showed thrombosis of the portal vein and acute appendicitis.

Arthritis or vasculitis as presenting symptoms of Crohn's disease.

Objective: The aim of this study was to describe arthritis or vasculitis as initial manifestations of Crohn's disease (CD).

Methods: We describe three cases in which the rheumatological manifestations preceded the bowel disease and one with rheumatological manifestation and asymptomatic gut inflammation. The information on clinical manifestations, laboratory examination results, imaging procedures, and histological data were gathered from the patients' medical charts.

[Watermelon stomach: a cause of chronic blood loss in the elderly].

Watermelon stomach, or gastric vascular ectasia, is a relatively new, distinct clinical entity. This rare vascular abnormality of the stomach causes severe chronic blood loss and iron-deficiency anemia, particularly in the elderly. Endoscopically it is characterized by longitudinal antral folds which contain visible vessels radiating from the pylorus, and resembling the dark stripes on the surface of some watermelons.

[Primary gastric tuberculosis].

Intestinal tuberculosis (TB) comprises 5% of all cases of TB and may be a major problem in immigrant communities, although the incidence of pulmonary TB is declining. Gastric TB is rare, constituting 0.1-2% of all cases of TB.

[Transient thyroid dysfunction during chronic viral hepatitis treated with alpha-interferon].

2 patients with chronic viral hepatitis were treated with alpha-interferon and developed thyroid dysfunction. Both patients were previously euthyroid and had thyroids of normal size. 1 developed hypothyroidism (FT4 0.

Celiac disease as a cause of transient hypocalcemia and hypovitaminosis D in a 13 year-old girl.

We report a thirteen year-old girl with symptomatic hypocalcemia secondary to celiac disease. Serum vitamin D levels [25OH-VitD3 and 24,25(OH)2-VitD3] were low, whereas 1,25(OH)2D3 and PTH levels were higher than normal. Shortly after introducing a gluten-free diet, the patient became asymptomatic, regaining normal growth and pubertal development and serum calcium levels returned to normal.

[Endoscopic drainage of pancreatic pseudocyst: endoscopic cysto-enterostomy].

Pancreatic pseudocysts occur in 20% of cases of chronic pancreatitis. Spontaneous resolution is seen in about 9% of the cases, but most cysts persist and frequently cause complications, such as compression of adjacent organs or infection. Endoscopic cysto-enterostomy has recently been reported as a new nonsurgical invasive approach.

A 10 year single centre experience of percutaneous and endoscopic extraction of bile duct stones with T tube in situ.

A non-randomised single centre study of 226 consecutive patients referred over 10 years with retained common bile duct stones and a T tube in situ or a cholecystostomy tube are reported. Percutaneous extraction was attempted in 204 and endoscopic extraction in 68 patients. Percutaneous clearance was achieved in 158 (77.

[Nonsurgical treatment of bile duct stones].

Despite advances in intraoperative choledochoscopy and cholangiography, it is still common for bile duct stones to remain after common bile duct (CBD) exploration. The incidence of bile duct calculi in those undergoing cholecystectomy ranges from 7-15%, and that of retained stones immediately after CBD exploration, from 10-13%. Re-exploration carries a postoperative mortality varying from 3-28%.

Exogastric neurilemmoma presenting as acute abdomen: role of computed tomography in diagnosis.

A case of subserosal gastric neurilemmoma is hereby presented. This reported case is unique in its clinical presentation including the appearance of acute abdomen and fever subsequent to unremarkable and uneventful upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. The tendency of neurilemmoma to cause mucosal ulceration with fistula formation probably led to this clinical presentation.

Concurrent collagenous colitis and multiple ileal carcinoids.

A case of collagenous colitis in a patient with ileal carcinoid is described. Considerable fibrofatty thickening of the small bowel mesentery was present. The association of these findings appears to be unprecedented.

Familial achalasia with absent tear production.

Three of five siblings were evaluated because of dysphagia and failure to thrive. Radiologic and manometric studies were consistent with achalasia of the cardia. All of these siblings had deficient tear production.

Secretory piece and IgA deficiency in a patient with Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia.

A case of a patient suffering from Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia who developed diarrhea and mild steatorrhea is described. Laboratory studies revealed low serum IgA, intestinal secretory IgA deficiency, and small intestine bacterial overgrowth as demonstrated by the C14-cholylglycine breath test. These findings suggest that selective IgA deficiency and secretory component deficiency may be contributing factors in the development of diarrhea in Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia.

[Eosinophilic granuloma of the stomach associated with polyarthritis].

Eosinophilic granulomas of the stomach, also known as inflammatory pseudotumours, are infrequently occurring lesions characterised histologically by local capillary and fibroblastic proliferation with infiltration of eosinophilic cells. This condition is benign and appears as a polypoid mass with or without ulceration. A case of association of a polyarthritis with a eosinophilic polypoid gastric granuloma is described.