INTRODUCTION: A substantial proportion of adult patients with celiac disease on a gluten-free diet exhibit persistent villous atrophy, and inadvertent gluten exposure may be one of the causes. The aim of the present study was to evaluate villous atrophy persistence after 2 years on a gluten-free diet in de novo adult patients with celiac disease with strict control of gluten exposure. METHODS: Symptomatic de novo adult patients with celiac disease were prospectively included. Clinical visits and dietary surveillance were scheduled every 6 months during a 2-year follow-up period. At each visit, fecal samples were collected and stored at −20 °C until analysis for gluten immunogenic peptides (f-GIPs). A follow-up duodenal biopsy was performed at 2 years. We evaluated the variables associated with persistent villous atrophy. RESULTS: Seventy-six patients completed the study (36.5 ± 1.6 years, 73% women); persistent villous atrophy was observed in 40 (53%), whereas 72.5% were asymptomatic and 75% had negative serology. Detectable f-GIP >0.08 μg/g in at least 1 fecal sample was seen in 69% of patients. There were no significant differences in the median f-GIP at each visit and median area under the curve over the serial measurements between patients with persistent villous atrophy and those who recovered. On multivariate analysis, only older age was associated with persistent villous atrophy (32% for 16–30 years; 67% for >30 years; P = 0.016). DISCUSSION: The rate of persistent villous atrophy after 2 years was high in adult patients with celiac disease on an intentionally strict gluten-free diet. Low-level ongoing inadvertent gluten exposure could be a contributing factor to persistent villous atrophy.

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of intravenous ferric carboxymaltose (FCM) following hospitalization for acute gastrointestinal bleeding (AGIB) in the context of a restrictive transfusion strategy.Patients and methodsA retrospective single-center study analyzed patients with AGIB (excluding AGIB secondary to portal hypertension) administered a single FCM dose with or without blood transfusion.ResultsEighty-six episodes in 84 patients were analyzed. Seventy-nine patients had upper AGIB. Nineteen episodes were associated with hemodynamic instability. FCM was administered during hospitalization as a single dose of 1000 mg iron in 84/86 episodes and as a single dose of 500 mg iron in two episodes, with blood transfusion in 60/86 (69.8%) episodes. The mean hemoglobin (Hb) was 9.0 g/dl at admission, 7.6 g/dl at the lowest in-hospital value, 9.4 g/dl at discharge, and 12.7 g/dl at follow-up (mean: 55 days postdischarge) (P<0.001 for follow-up vs. all other timepoints). The lowest mean in-hospital Hb value was 7.2 and 8.8 g/dl, respectively, in patients with transfusion+FCM versus FCM alone; the mean Hb was 12.4 versus 13.7 g/dl at follow-up. In patients administered FCM alone, the mean Hb at follow-up in the subpopulations aged older than or equal to 75 years (n=33), Charlson comorbidity index of at least 3 (n=48), and Hb of up to 10 g/dl at admission (n=47) were 12.6, 13.1, and 13.3 g/dl, respectively. No adverse effects were detected.ConclusionTreatment with FCM for AGIB is associated with a good erythropoietic response and anemia correction after hospitalization, even in severe episodes or when transfusion is needed. FCM is safe and well tolerated, and may support a restrictive transfusion policy.

Background: Patients with liver cirrhosis and gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB) often develop anemia. Ferric carboxymaltose (FCM) is an intravenous (i.v.) iron formulation approved for use in patients with iron deficiency with inadequate response to oral iron therapy or when oral iron cannot be used. Here we analyzed the efficacy and safety of FCM treatment in cirrhotic patients with anemia and GIB. Methods: Retrospective observational study of patients with cirrhosis and acute or chronic GIB treated with 1,000 mg FCM at the University Hospital Arnau de Vilanova (Lleida, Spain) that follows a restrictive-transfusion strategy. All data were obtained from the patients' medical records. We used the Wilcoxon test to evaluate statistical significance. Results: Patients with cirrhosis and GIB (n = 34) were treated with 1,000 mg FCM. Portal hypertension were present in 88.2% of the patients. For hospitalized patients (n = 21), median serum hemoglobin (s-Hb) levels increased by 3.0 g/dL (p < 0.02) and 3.9 g/dL (p < 0.07) for patients treated with FCM who had or had not received also a transfusion, respectively, compared to levels recorded upon admission. For outpatients (n = 13) the mean s-Hb levels was 9.8 ± 1.6 g/dL before FCM treatment and 11.3 ± 2.1 g/dL after treatment, demonstrating a mean increase of 1.5 g/dL (p < 0.001). No serious adverse reactions to FCM were observed. Conclusion: FCM administration achieved optimal s-Hb levels in most cirrhotic patients with acute or chronic GIB, suggesting that early FCM infusion improves and maintains optimal s-Hb levels in these patients and may be an appropriate first-line therapy to treat their anemia.

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