Summary Although adverse effects of non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) occur in only a small proportion of users, the widespread use of these drugs has resulted in a substantial overall number of affected persons who experience serious gastrointestinal complications. Dyspeptic symptoms are estimated to occur in 10–60% of NSAID users and lead to discontinuation of treatment in 5–15% of rheumatoid arthritis patients taking NSAIDs. It is now well established that the point prevalence of peptic ulcer disease in patients receiving conventional NSAID therapy ranges between 10 and 30%, representing a 10–30‐fold increase over that found in the general population. One of 175 users of conventional NSAIDs in the USA will be hospitalized each year for NSAID‐induced gastrointestinal damage. The mortality of hospitalized patients remains about 5–10%, with an expected annual death rate of 0.08%. The selective COX‐II inhibitors (rofecoxib, celecoxib, parecoxib, etoricoxib, valdecoxib, lumiracoxib) show consistently comparable efficacy to that of conventional non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis, but have a significantly reduced propensity to cause gastrointestinal toxicity. In many cases, the gastric effects of therapeutically active doses of COX‐II inhibitors are indistinguishable from placebo. The safety benefits of COX‐2 inhibitors given alone appear similar to combined therapy with conventional NSAIDs and gastroprotective agents. These findings warrant the consideration of COX‐II inhibitors as first‐line therapy in patients requiring long‐term pain control.

In the year since the last review, continuing pressure on endoscopy suites to improve efficiency and reduce costs without compromising patient care has led to growing interest in alternatives to pharmacological sedation and in the use of short-acting sedatives. Relaxation music, acupuncture, and the use of small-caliber endoscopes for unsedated peroral gastroscopy have therefore been suggested as ways of increasing tolerance and reducing discomfort. With regard to ultrathin and superthin endoscopes, the results are interesting, but further data from controlled trials and in studies including larger numbers of patients are still needed. The form of sedation for gastrointestinal endoscopy that has attracted greatest interest over the last year is the use by nonanesthetists of intravenous propofol, administered either alone at standard doses to achieve deep sedation, or at lower doses combined with benzodiazepines and opioids to achieve moderate sedation/analgesia. In comparison with benzodiazepines/opioids, the results were in favor of propofol: the mean time to sedation was shorter and the depth of sedation was greater. In addition, patients receiving propofol reached full recovery earlier and were discharged sooner. However, in the survey of patient satisfaction at discharge, it was found that the sedation methods did not have a significant impact on overall patient satisfaction. Some important issues concerning the narrow therapeutic range of propofol and the need for adequate training of endoscopists to deal with any problems related to deep sedation are still open - despite the growing amount of data suggesting that the drug is safe even when administered by registered nurses, an approach that is possibly more cost-effective than delivery by gastroenterologists or anesthetists. The morbidity and mortality associated with cardiopulmonary complications continue to be a significant concern during gastrointestinal endoscopy. Professional societies and national expert peer groups have issued practice guidelines for sedation and analgesia that call for continuous monitoring of the patient's hemodynamic and ventilatory status and consciousness. Direct observation is facilitated by electronic devices (pulse oximetry, capnography), directly indicating the patient's ventilatory status and the depth of sedation. Recently, it has been proposed that the bispectral index (BIS), an electroencephalography-based technique, can be used to monitor the depth of sedation during gastrointestinal endoscopy. However, the results of a recent study cast some doubt on the usefulness of the BIS, in its current version, for titrating boluses of propofol to an adequate level of sedation. Further data therefore appear to be needed to assess whether or not BIS values can help avoid unnecessary propofol dosage and can replace continuous assessment of the ventilatory effort.

Over a period of 7 years the use of SBCE in Lombardia increased steadily confirming, in clinical practice, a high diagnostic yield and an acceptable safety profile.

The association between NSAIDs and the presence of upper gastrointestinal (GI) complications is well established. Evidence that acid aggravates NSAID-induced injury provides a rationale for minimizing such damage by acid suppression. Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) appear to be very effective in treating NSAID-related dyspepsia, and also in healing gastric and duodenal ulcers in patients continuing to receive the NSAID. An analysis of data from comparative studies of PPIs versus ranitidine, misoprostol and sucralfate shows a therapeutic advantage in favour of the PPI. Several studies now confirm the efficacy of co-therapy with PPIs in the short- and long-term prevention of NSAID-induced upper GI injury. PPIs are more effective than histamine H(2)-receptor antagonists at standard dosages in reducing the risk of gastric and duodenal ulcer, and are superior to misoprostol in preventing duodenal but not gastric lesions. However, when balancing effectiveness and tolerance, PPIs may be considered the treatment of choice in the short- and long-term prevention of NSAID-related mucosal lesions. To date, there are only a few published articles dealing with the role of PPIs in the prevention of upper GI complications. Recent epidemiological and interventional studies provide some evidence that PPIs are of benefit. However, more controlled studies using clinical outcomes are needed to establish the best management strategy (PPIs combined with traditional NSAIDs or with cyclo-oxygenase-2 selective inhibitors) especially in patients with multiple risk factors, in patients using concomitant low-dose aspirin, corticosteroids or anticoagulants (high risk group), or in patients with a history of ulcer complications (very high risk group). Furthermore, it should be underlined that Helicobacter pylori infection positively interacts with the gastroprotective effect of PPIs; therefore, the true efficacy of these drugs in preventing NSAID-related ulcer complications should be reassessed without the confounding influence of this microorganism.

Objective: The stomach is the main target organ for bariatric surgery, but no medical treatment has been developed to increase satiety and decrease food intake via gastric pathways. The aim of our study was to investigate whether or not the intraparietogastric administration of botulinum toxin A (BTX), able to modify the motility patterns of the stomach, could be useful for treatment of obesity. Design: Double blind controlled study. Subjects: Twenty-four morbidly obese patients (mean weight (s.e.m.) 116.174.89 kg, mean body mass index (BMI) 43.671.09 kg/m 2 ) were blindly randomized to receive 200 IU BTX or placebo into the antrum and fundus of the stomach by intraparietal endoscopic administration. Measurements: We evaluated weight loss, BMI changes, satiety score, the maximal gastric capacity for liquids and the gastric emptying time (octanoic acid breath test). Results: The two groups were homogeneous for anthropometric characteristics. Eight weeks after treatment, BTX patients had significantly higher weight loss (1171.09 vs 5.771.1 kg, Po0.001) and BMI reduction (470.36 vs 270.58 kg/m 2 , Po0.001) and a higher satiety score on a visual analogic scale (7.6370.38 vs 4.7270.44, Po0.001) than controls. Furthermore, BTX patients showed a significantly greater reduction in maximal gastric capacity for liquids (266.6748 vs 139731, Po0.001) and a greater prolongation in gastric emptying time ( þ 18.9378 vs À2.276.9 min, Po0.05). No significant side effects or neurophysiologic changes were found. Conclusions: Topical intragastric BTX was effective in reducing food intake and body weight in morbidly obese patients.

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SUMMARY This placebo‐controlled study assessed the efficacy and tolerability of polyethylene glycol‐electrolyte lavage solution (PEG‐ELS), with and without simethicone, in the preparation of patients with inflammatory bowel disease for colonoscopy. PEG‐ELS 4 L plus placebo, or PEG‐ELS 4 L plus simethicone 120 mg, was administered according to a randomized double‐blind protocol to 115 patients with ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease. The parameters assessed were: presence of bubbles, degree of haziness, degree of bowel cleansing and patient acceptance. In the 105 patients completing the study, the efficacy of colonic lavage was found to be essentially comparable for the two preparations, although the addition of simethicone showed a significant reduction in the formation of bubbles. Significantly better results were reported by patients treated with the drug combination regarding reduction of general malaise (P= 0.01) and sleep disturbance (P= 0.01). The PEG‐ELS solution represents an effective bowel cleansing method which can also be used for patients suffering from inflammatory bowel disease. The addition of simethicone to the traditional formulation is an acceptable development in terms of clinical efficacy and tolerability.

of eradication of Helicobacter pylori on gastritis in duodenal ulcer patients. Scand J Gastroenterol 1994;29 Suppl 201:28-34. The incidence and mean score of Helicobacter pylori-related, active antroduodenitis, lesions of superficial antral epithelium and duodenal gastric-type metaplasia were higher in endoscopic biopsies from a large series of patients with duodenal ulcer, when compared with asymptomatic patients or patients with nonulcer dyspepsia. In 65 out of 73 patients with duodenal ulcer who could be followed up, H. pylori was eradicated using a combination of amoxycillin, 3 g daily, metronidazole, 1 g daily, and omeprazole, 20 mg daily. Rapid and permanent (6-month follow-up) abolition of both gastroduodenitis activity and lesions of the gastric surface epithelium was observed in these 65 patients. There was also a progressive decrease in total immune-inflammatory cells but without a substantial change in duodenal gastric-type metaplasia. Similar, but transient and quantitatively less prominent, improvements were observed in the antroduodenal mucosa, which had been temporarily cleared of H. pylori by treatment with omeprazole alone. Conversely, increased gastritis activity, epithelial lesions and immune-inflammatory cell scores were found in the short term in the corpus mucosa. which was not cleared of H. pylori after omeprazole treatment. It is concluded that, of the various H. pylori-related mucosal changes, antroduodenitis activity and antral epithelial lesions most closely reflect the severity of mucosal damage and are probably the most important factors in duodenal ulcerogenesis. Their complete and rapid suppression after bacterial eradication may be a key factor in preventing ulcer relapse. Scand J Gastroenterol Downloaded from informahealthcare.com by Indiana University on 12/13/14 For personal use only. Scand J Gastroenterol Downloaded from informahealthcare.com by Indiana University on 12/13/14 For personal use only. 27. R i b V, Sommi P, Fiocca R, et al. Cytotoxicity of Helicobacter pylon on human gastric epithelial cells in vitro: role of cytotoxin(s) and ammonia. Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol1993;5:687-94. Scand J Gastroenterol Downloaded from informahealthcare.com by Indiana University on 12/13/14 For personal use only.