Long-Term Effectiveness and Safety of Ustekinumab in Crohn's Disease: Results from a Large Real-Life Cohort Study.

Ustekinumab (UST) is an interleukin-12/interleukin-23 receptor antagonist approved for the treatment of Crohn's disease (CD). Only limited real-life data on the long-term outcomes of CD patients treated with UST are available. This study assessed UST's long-term effectiveness and safety in a large population-based cohort of moderate to severe CD patients.

Ustekinumab safety and effectiveness in patients with ulcerative colitis: results from a large real-life study.

Background: Ustekinumab (UST) is an interleukin-12/interleukin-23 receptor antagonist recently approved for treating ulcerative colitis (UC) but with limited real-world data. Therefore, we evaluated the effectiveness and safety of UST in patients with UC in a real-world setting.

Research Design And Methods: This is a multicenter, retrospective, observational cohort study.

Use of tofacitinib as first or second-line therapy is associated with better outcomes in patients with ulcerative colitis: data from a real-world study.

Background: Data regarding the real-world (RW) use of tofacitinib (TOF) in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) are limited. We aimed to investigate TOF's RW efficacy and safety in Italian UC patients.

Research Design And Methods: A retrospective assessment of clinical and endoscopic activity was performed according to the Mayo score.

Real-world efficacy and safety of vedolizumab in managing ulcerative colitis versus Crohn's disease: results from an Italian multicenter study.

Background: Vedolizumab (VDZ) can be used to treat refractory ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD). We assessed whether there are differences in treating UC vs CD with VDZ.

Research Design And Methods: Mayo score in UC and the Harvey-Bradshaw Index (HBI) in CD scored the clinical activity.

Comparison of performances of infliximab biosimilars CT-P13 versus SB2 in the treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases: a real-life multicenter, observational study in Italy.

Background: To compare the performances of Infliximab (IFX) biosimilar CT-P13 and SB2 in the treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) outpatients in Italy.

Research Design And Methods: Three hundred and eighty IBD outpatients were retrospectively evaluated. The primary endpoint was to compare the two IFX biosimilars in terms of reaching and maintenance of remission at any timepoint.

Real-life efficacy and safety of Ustekinumab as second- or third-line therapy in Crohn's disease: results from a large Italian cohort study.

Objective: Ustekinumab (UST) is an anti-IL12/23 antibody for the treatment of Crohn's Disease (CD). The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of UST in a large population-based cohort of CD patients who failed previous treatment with other biologics.

Patients And Methods: 194 CD patients (108 males and 86 females, mean age 48 years (range 38-58 years) were retrospectively reviewed.

Stress and brain functional changes in patients with Crohn's disease: A functional magnetic resonance imaging study.

Background: In Crohn's disease (CD) patients, stress is believed to influence symptoms generation. Stress may act via central nervous system pathways to affect visceral sensitivity and motility thus exacerbating gastrointestinal symptoms. The neural substrate underpinning these mechanisms needs to be investigated in CD.

Cerebrovascular events in inflammatory bowel disease patients treated with anti-tumour necrosis factor alpha agents.

Background And Aims: Cerebrovascular accidents [CVA] have rarely been reported in inflammatory bowel disease [IBD] patients treated with anti-tumour necrosis alpha [anti-TNF alpha] agents. Our aim here was to describe the clinical course of CVA in these patients.

Methods: This was a European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation [ECCO] retrospective observational study, performed as part of the CONFER [COllaborative Network For Exceptionally Rare case reports] project.

Absence of change in the gray matter volume of patients with ulcerative colitis in remission: a voxel based morphometry study.

Background: Recent neuroimaging studies have investigated the brain involvement in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and Ulcerative Colitis (UC). Functional studies found abnormalities in cognitive and emotional functions in CD and UC, while a voxel based morphometry (VBM) study found morphological changes in CD. We conducted a VBM study to compare the gray matter (GM) volume of UC patients and controls.

New insights into the brain involvement in patients with Crohn's disease: a voxel-based morphometry study.

Background: Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic intestinal disorder characterized by overproduction of inflammatory cytokines and recurrent abdominal pain. Recently, brain morphological abnormalities in the pain matrix were found in patients with chronic pain disorders including irritable bowel syndrome. To investigate potential structural brain changes associated with CD, we used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Functional magnetic resonance imaging study reveals differences in the habituation to psychological stress in patients with Crohn's disease versus healthy controls.

In patients with Crohn's disease (CD) stress is believed to increase the incidence of disease relapse. The brain processes stressful stimuli and triggers the stress-evoked responses. Habituation to stress is an adaptive process that allows minimizing these responses.

Intermittent gastric outlet obstruction due to a gallstone migrated through a cholecysto-gastric fistula: a new variant of "Bouveret's syndrome".

Bouveret's syndrome, defined as gastric outlet obstruction due to a large gallstone, is still one of the most dramatic biliary gallstone complications. Although new radiological and endoscopic techniques have made pre-surgical diagnosis possible in most cases and the death rate has dropped dramatically, "one-stage surgery" (biliary surgery carried out at the same time as the removal of the gut obstruction) should be still considered as the gold standard for the treatment of gallstone ileus.In this case, partial gastric outlet obstruction resulted in an atypical and insidious clinical presentation that allowed us to perform the conventional one-stage laparatomic procedure that completely solved the problem, thus avoiding any further complications.

Postacute transfer payment: how often are hospitals being underpaid?

The postacute transfer rule was implemented to stop what CMS perceived as double payment for certain DRGs that frequently result in a transfer from a hospital to a postacute care facility. Often, patients are coded as having been discharged to a qualifying postacute care facility when in fact the patient either does not receive the anticipated care or does not receive it within the required regulatory time frame. Hospitals have a right to review all paid acute care inpatient claims for services delivered under transfer DRGs to verify that postacute care was actually provided, and recover payment if the postacute care was not provided within the required time frame.

Proposal of a new clinical index predictive of endoscopic severity in ulcerative colitis.

Assessment of disease activity by clinical parameters in ulcerative colitis is still controversial. Different clinical indexes have been proposed. Colonoscopy provides detailed information on mucosal damage.

Comparison of three different risk scoring systems in non-variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding.

Background And Aims: To prospectively validate in patients with non-variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding three risk scoring systems (the Baylor College scoring system, the Rockall's risk scoring system and the Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre predictive index) previously proposed to be predictive of rebleeding/death after upper gastrointestinal bleeding.

Patients And Methods: We calculated values of the scores for 343 patients, who underwent endoscopy after non-variceal upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage during the years 1997-1999. We compared the observed outcomes with the ones expected upon the original series contributed by the authors.

What is the utility of selected clinical and endoscopic parameters in predicting the risk of death after caustic ingestion?

Background And Study Aims: Despite the increasing use of early esophagogastroduodenoscopy, the prognostic evaluation and triage of patients who have ingested caustic material is challenging. We evaluated the usefulness of selected clinical and endoscopic parameters in predicting the risk of death after ingestion of caustic substances.

Patients And Methods: Clinical and endoscopic parameters were obtained from the records of all the patients admitted to our endoscopy unit because of ingestion of caustic material between 1 March 1982 and 30 June 1999.