Esophageal Lichen Planus: A Descriptive Multicenter Report.

Goals: To better understand the characteristics, treatment approaches, and outcomes of patients with esophageal lichen planus (ELP).

Background: ELP is a rare, often unrecognized and misdiagnosed disorder. Data on this unique patient population are currently limited to small, single-center series.

Associations Between Patterns of Esophageal Dysmotility and Extra-Intestinal Features in Patients With Systemic Sclerosis.

Objective: The gastrointestinal tract is commonly involved in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) with varied manifestations. As our understanding of SSc gastrointestinal disease pathogenesis and risk stratification is limited, we sought to investigate whether patterns of esophageal dysfunction associate with specific clinical phenotypes in SSc.

Methods: Patients enrolled in the Johns Hopkins Scleroderma Center Research Registry who completed high-resolution esophageal manometry (HREM) studies as part of their clinical care between 2011 and 2020 were identified.

Clinical Assessment of Gastrointestinal Involvement in Patients with Systemic Sclerosis.

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) has the potential to affect any component of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. GI involvement in SSc is a leading cause of morbidity and overall decreased quality of life in this patient population, identifying a need for a concise approach to work-up. This literature review aims to present a systematic, anatomical approach and differential diagnosis of GI involvement in SSc for the general internist and rheumatologist.

A practical approach to the evaluation and management of gastrointestinal symptoms in patients with systemic sclerosis.

The gastrointestinal (GI) tract is the most commonly affected internal organ system in systemic sclerosis (SSc). SSc may lead to impaired function in any region of the GI tract, from the esophagus to the anorectum, which causes significant morbidity as well as mortality in patient subsets. Given the low prevalence of SSc in the community, many rheumatologists may not have a systematic framework for diagnosing or treating the GI complaints in this disease.

Potential of Electrical Neuromodulation for Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a common chronic inflammatory disease of the digestive tract that is often debilitating. It affects patients' quality of life and imposes a financial burden. Despite advances in treatment with medications such as biologics, a large proportion of patients do not respond to medical therapy or develop adverse events.

Same-Day vs Different-Day Elective Upper and Lower Endoscopic Procedures by Setting.

Importance: Performing elective upper and lower endoscopic procedures on the same day is a patient-centered and less costly approach than a 2-stage approach performed on different days, when clinically appropriate. Whether this practice pattern varies based on practice setting has not been studied.

Objectives: To estimate the rate of different-day upper and lower endoscopic procedures in 3 types of outpatient settings and investigate the factors associated with the performance of these procedures on different days.

Matrix metalloproteinase activity stimulates N-cadherin shedding and the soluble N-cadherin ectodomain promotes classical microglial activation.

Background: Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are a family of enzymes that are typically released from intracellular stores to act on specific extracellular substrates. MMP expression and activity can be increased in a neuronal activity-dependent manner, and further increased in response to tissue injury. MMP substrates include cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) that are abundantly expressed in the brain and well positioned for membrane proximal cleavage.

Histological Disease Activity as a Predictor of Clinical Relapse Among Patients With Ulcerative Colitis: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Objectives: Endoscopic remission in ulcerative colitis (UC) is associated with improved clinical outcomes. We assessed whether histological remission predicts clinical outcomes, estimated the magnitude of effect, and determined whether histological remission provides additional prognostic utility beyond clinical or endoscopic remission.

Methods: Bibliographic databases were searched for studies in inflammatory bowel disease providing baseline histological status and relation to an outcome of clinical relapse or exacerbation.