Hepatic encephalopathy is typically seen in advanced liver disease and in patients with a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt. Common triggers include infections, gastrointestinal bleeding, electrolyte disturbances, dehydration, and drug/toxin use such as benzodiazepines and alcohol. In rare instances, other metabolic abnormalities such as hypothyroidism may also exacerbate hyperammonemia in patients with underlying liver disease due to hypothyroidism-induced myopathy, which increases urea production and decreases clearance through reduced glutamine synthetase activity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFColon cancer is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality throughout the world. Some of the most common presenting signs are a change in bowel habits, alteration of fecal contour or consistency, blood in stool, fatigue, and weight loss. However, it may present insidiously.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOur patient is a 47-year-old African American female with a past medical history of recurrent episodes of small bowel obstruction. She presented to the emergency department with symptoms of nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Upon further evaluation, imaging showed obstruction at the terminal ileum.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDescription Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) are antagonistic antibodies that block specific immune checkpoint molecules, such as cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA-4), programmed cell death protein (PD-1) and its ligand PD-L1. With FDA approval, the use of these checkpoint inhibitors has led to long-lasting tumor responses. However, by stimulating the immune system, checkpoint inhibitors can cause immune-related adverse events involving the endocrine organs, among others.
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