Herbal weight-loss supplements are sold as self-medication products, and are often used under the misconception that their natural origin guarantees their safety. Food supplements are not required to provide any benefit/risk profile evaluation before marketing; however, possible risks associated with use of herbal extracts in food supplements are becoming more and more documented in the literature. Some herbs are listed as the leading cause of herb-induced liver injury, with a severe or potentially lethal clinical course, and unpredictable herb-drug interactions. Garcinia cambogia (GC) extract and GC-containing products are some of the most popular dietary supplements currently marketed for weight loss. Here, we present four cases of acute liver failure in women taking GC extract for weight loss, and a literature review of clinical evidences about hepatic toxicity in patients taking dietary supplements containing GC extract.
The ES allows the visualization of the entire colonic mucosa in most patients, with good sensitivity/specificity for the detection of lesions and without requiring sedation.
We describe a 39-year-old male who presented with a fever of unknown origin, the diagnostic work-up of which disclosed an acute cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection complicated by a partial superior mesenteric vein (SMV) thrombosis. Further investigations revealed the presence of factor V Leiden mutation. Oral anticoagulant treatment with warfarin led to a complete recanalization of SMV two months after. A literature review on the association between CMV infection and portal system (PS) thrombosis in immunocompetent patients was performed. We found that, in agreement with our case, in a minority of case reports patients did not complain of abdominal pain, but presented with a mononucleosis-like syndrome with malaise and prolonged fever and displayed a variable elevation of aminotransferase levels. Interestingly, most of them exhibited a limited extension of portal thrombosis. On the whole, these data suggest that PS thrombosis during acute CMV infection may be an underestimated complication.
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