Red cell distribution width to platelet ratio, a useful indicator of liver fibrosis in chronic hepatitis patients.

Aims: We investigated the correlation between the red cell distribution width (RDW) and RDW-to-platelet ratio (RPR) with the degree of inflammation and fibrosis in chronic hepatitis patients with different etiologies and in native and transplanted liver.

Methods: Between 2010 and 2013, patients from the MedStar Washington Hospital Center and Georgetown University Hospital with chronic hepatitis B, chronic hepatitis C, alcoholic hepatitis, and primary biliary cirrhosis who had a biopsy of the liver done in this time period were included. The correlation among the RDW, RPR, and model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) score with the degree of liver inflammation, fibrosis, and cirrhosis in separate groups of native and transplanted liver was calculated.

Development of minimally invasive techniques for management of medically-complicated obesity.

The field of bariatric surgery has been rapidly growing and evolving over the past several decades. During the period that obesity has become a worldwide epidemic, new interventions have been developed to combat this complex disorder. The development of new laparoscopic and minimally invasive treatments for medically-complicated obesity has made it essential that gastrointestinal physicians obtain a thorough understanding of past developments and possible future directions in bariatrics.