Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus can beneficially affect the host by producing acetic acid and lactic acid, which lower pH and thereby inhibit the growth of pathogens or allow the probiotic bacteria to compete with pathogens for epithelial adhesion sites and nutrients. The transmural migration of enteric organisms into the peritoneal cavity can cause peritonitis in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. We hypothesized that the composition of the intestinal microbiota with regard to Lactobacillus species and Bifidobacterium species differed between PD patients and healthy controls. The aim of the study was to investigate these differences by real-time PCR analysis of fecal samples. There is a large, complex, and diverse microbial community in the human intestine. The intestinal microbiota plays an important role in digesting food, metabolizing endogenous and exogenous compounds, and producing essential vitamins. It also stimulates the immune system and prevents the colonization of the gastrointestinal tract by pathogens, and hence it influences human health (7, 9). The gastrointestinal microbiota of an adult human consists of more than 500 species, with 10 11 to 10 12 CFU per gram of stool (12,25). The predominant microorganisms are non-spore-forming, obligate anaerobes, such as Bacteroides, Fusobacterium, Eubacterium, and Bifidobacterium species. Other anaerobic bacteria found in large numbers include Lactobacillus species, various anaerobic Gram-positive cocci, and Clostridium species (4). Hida et al. studied the fecal flora of hemodialysis (HD) patients and healthy controls using traditional plating methods and found quantitative and qualitative differences between the two groups (13). It is plausible to suggest that the chronic inflammatory state in dialysis patients is in part due to a microbial imbalance in the gut, resulting in alteration of proinflammatory cytokines and production of uremic toxins from proteins fermented in the large intestine (16). Moreover, impaired intestinal barrier function in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients allows enteric organisms to enter the peritoneal cavity by transmural migration and to cause peritonitis (8,27). Peritonitis occasionally causes death and results in significant morbidity, including catheter loss, transfer to hemodialysis, transient loss of ultrafiltration, and possible permanent membrane damage (22). Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus can beneficially affect the host by inhibiting the growth of pathogens through production of acetic acid and lactic acid, which lower pH, or by competing with pathogens for epithelial adhesion sites and nutrients (10).To the best of our knowledge, no study has investigated the intestinal microbiota in PD patients before. The aim of this study, therefore, was to evaluate the differences in the intestinal microbiota between PD patients and healthy controls by examining fecal samples. We focused on Bifidobacterium species, Lactobacillus species, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterococcus species....

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BackgroundPrevious research has shown variation in the effects of patient factors, including hepatic necroinflammatory activity, on liver stiffness measurement (LSM). This prospective study attempts to identify explanatory factors for LSM in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) using acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) technology.MethodsA cohort of 127 Taiwanese patients with CHC underwent ARFI LSM and immediate percutaneous liver biopsy. This study compares the concurrent diagnostic performances of LSM and FibroTest using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Three multiple linear regression models were used to evaluate the significance of concurrent patient factors in explaining LSM.ResultsTo classify METAVIR fibrosis (F) stages, the areas under ROC curves (AUCs) were ARFI LSM, 0.847 (95% confidence interval (CI), 0.779-0.914) and FibroTest, 0.823 (95% CI, 0.748-0.898), for F1 versus F2-4; ARFI LSM, 0.902 (95% CI, 0.835-0.970) and FibroTest, 0.812 (95% CI, 0.735-0.888), for F1-2 versus F3-4; ARFI LSM, 0.831 (95% CI, 0.723-0.939) and FibroTest, 0.757 (95% CI, 0.648-0.865), for F1-3 versus F4. After adjusting for other demographic and biological covariates, biochemical and histological necroinflammatory factors consistently explained LSM. Factors included serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT)/upper limit of normal (ULN) categories (model R2 = 0.661, adjusted R2 = 0.629), ActiTest A scores (R2 = 0.662, adjusted R2 = 0.636), and METAVIR activity (A) grades (R2 = 0.651, adjusted R2 = 0.620). METAVIR F stages, body mass index, and platelet count were also independently associated with LSM. Necroinflammatory degrees, including ALT/ULN, ActiTest A scores, and METAVIR A grades, explained the false positivity of liver fibrosis staging using ARFI LSM.ConclusionsThe degree of hepatic necroinflammatory activity independently and significantly exaggerated liver fibrosis evaluation using ARFI LSM. However, comparisons with concurrent FibroTest indicate that ARFI LSM may be a promising alternative, or adjunctive single indicator, for liver fibrosis evaluation in patients with CHC.

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Background Studies on temporal changes in noninvasive fibrosis indices and liver stiffness measurement (LSM) in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) treated with direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs) are limited. Methods We retrospectively enrolled consecutive patients with CHC who had received DAAs. Results In total, we recruited 395 consecutive patients, of which 388 (98.2%) achieved a sustained virologic response (SVR) at 12 weeks after therapy. In patients who received DAA therapy and achieved SVR 12 weeks after therapy ( n = 388), the median aspartate aminotransferase/platelet ratio index (APRI) value decreased from 1.19 (0.62–2.44) at baseline to 0.50 (0.32–0.95), 0.51 (0.31–0.92), 0.48 (0.31–0.88), and 0.52 (0.33–0.92) at week 2, week 4, end of therapy, and PW12, respectively (all P < 0.001). The median FIB-4 value decreased from 2.88 (1.56–5.60) at baseline to 2.10 (1.30–3.65), 2.15 (1.30–3.65), 2.11 (1.37–3.76), and 2.22 (1.45–3.82) at week 2, week 4, end of therapy, and PW12, respectively (all P < 0.001). The median alanine aminotransferase level significantly decreased from week 2 until PW12 (all P < 0.001). The platelet count significantly increased from 2 weeks after DAA therapy initiation until PW12 (all P < 0.001); however, the magnitude of changes in the platelet count was low. In patients with paired LSMs obtained using acoustic radiation force impulse elastography at baseline and PW12 ( n = 199), the median LSM decreased from 1.78 (1.25–2.30) m/s at baseline to 1.38 (1.14–1.88) m/s at PW12 ( P < 0.001). Conclusions Noninvasive fibrosis indices, namely APRI and FIB-4, exhibited a rapid and sustained decline from week 2 until PW12 in patients with CHC who achieved SVR to DAA therapy. The rapid decline in APRI and FIB-4 values might mainly result from improvement in necroinflammation. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12876-019-0973-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

ObjectiveData regarding the real-world effectiveness and safety of sofosbuvir/velpatasvir (SOF/VEL) with or without low-dose ribavirin (RBV) in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and severe renal impairment (RI) are limited. We evaluated the performance of SOF/VEL with or without low-dose RBV in HCV-infected patients with chronic kidney disease stage 4 or 5.Design191 patients with compensated (n=181) and decompensated (n=10) liver diseases receiving SOF/VEL (400/100 mg/day) alone and SOF/VEL with low-dose RBV (200 mg/day) for 12 weeks were retrospectively recruited at 15 academic centres in Taiwan. The effectiveness was determined by sustained virological response at off-treatment week 12 (SVR12) in evaluable (EP) and per-protocol populations (PP). The safety profiles were assessed.ResultsThe SVR12 rates by EP and PP analyses were 94.8% (95% CI 90.6% to 97.1%) and 100% (95% CI 97.9% to 100%). In patients with compensated liver disease, the SVR12 rates were 95.0% and 100% by EP and PP analyses. In patients with decompensated liver disease, the SVR12 rates were 90.0% and 100% by EP and PP analyses. Ten patients who failed to achieve SVR12 were attributed to non-virological failures. Among the 20 serious adverse events (AEs), none were judged related to SOF/VEL or RBV. The AEs occurring in ≥10% included fatigue (14.7%), headache (14.1%), nausea (12.6%), insomnia (12.0%) and pruritus (10.5%). None had ≥grade 3 total bilirubin or alanine aminotransferase elevations.ConclusionSOF/VEL with or without low-dose RBV is effective and well-tolerated in HCV-infected patients with severe RI.

SUMMARY BackgroundThe roles remain unclear of early on-treatment quantitative serum HBsAg and hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA levels in the prediction of a sustained response (SR) to peginterferon alfa-2a therapy in HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients infected with genotype B or C.

Background