Boceprevir early-access for advanced-fibrosis/cirrhosis in Asia-Pacific hepatitis C virus genotype 1 non-responders/relapsers.

Aim: To examined the efficacy and safety of treatment with boceprevir, PEGylated-interferon and ribavirin (PR) in hepatitis C virus genotype 1 (HCVGT1) PR treatment-failures in Asia.

Methods: The Boceprevir Named-Patient Program provided boceprevir to HCVGT1 PR treatment-failures. Participating physicians were invited to contribute data from their patients: baseline characteristics, on-treatment responses, sustained virological response at week 12 (SVR12), and safety were collected and analysed.

Crohn's disease runs a more aggressive course in young Asian patients.

Background: Crohn's disease is a heterogeneous inflammatory bowel disease. The impact of age at diagnosis on the clinical course of patients varies widely as reported in the Western literature. Using the Vienna Classification, we seek to determine whether young Crohn's disease patients in an Asian population followed a different clinical course than old patients.

Clinical characteristics of ulcerative colitis in Singapore, a multiracial city-state.

Background: Ulcerative colitis (UC) is rare in Asia. Singapore is an ethnically heterogeneous city-state with a population made up of Chinese (77%), Indians (7.5%), and Malays (14%).

Impact of a nurse-led counselling service on quality of life in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Aim: Health related quality of life is impaired in patients suffering from inflammatory bowel disease. Although counselling directed towards physical and psychological morbidity is assumed to improve health related quality of life, this has never been demonstrated.

Methods: Physical and psychological well-being were assessed using questionnaires administered to 100 out-patients in the United Kingdom suffering from inflammatory bowel disease, 50 subjects not suffering from inflammatory bowel disease and a disease control group comprising 28 patients with psoriatic arthritis.