No abstract

Background The rise in incidence of esophageal cancer (EC) in the United States (U.S.) over the last four decades has been well documented; however, data on trends in long-term survival and impact on modern therapies associated with survival is lacking. Methods The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database was queried to identify patients with confirmed EC. Cox proportional hazard regression was used to determine independent mortality factors. Results Of 93,167 patients diagnosed with EC between 1973 and 2009, 49% had a histologic diagnosis of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC). There was an increase (almost double) in the proportion of patients with adenocarcinoma from the 1970's to 2000's (n = 2,350; 35% to n = 32,212; 61%, p<0.001). Surgery was performed for localized disease in a majority of EC regardless of type (n = 46,683; 89%). Use of surgical treatment increased significantly over the study period (49% to 64%, p<0.001). There was also an increase in overall median survival (6 months versus 10 months, p<0.001) and 5-year survival rate (9% to 22%, p<0.001). Median survival increased consistently for EAC and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) until the 1990's. After this period, median survival of EAC continued to increase more rapidly while SCC remained relatively stable. Conclusion A significant survival improvement in esophageal cancer was seen from 1973 to 2009, largely due to earlier detection at a curative stage and greater utilization of treatment modalities (especially surgery). Despite the rising prevalence, patients with EAC have better long-term survival outcomes than those SCC.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) first emerged in the fall of 2019 and has since become a global pandemic. This virus, which causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), has led to over 4.8 million infections and 316,000 deaths worldwide to date. 1 Prior studies have demonstrated advanced age, chronic cardiopulmonary diseases, immunosuppression and obesity as potential risk factors for worse clinical outcomes among patients with COVID-19-with mortality often driven by disease-associated cardiopulmonary failure. 2,3 While the virus primarily affects the lungs, experience from China and the USA also suggests that SARS-CoV-2 may impact extra-pulmonary systems, including the gastrointestinal and hepatobiliary systems. 4,5 Chronic liver disease (CLD), including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), alcohol-related liver disease and chronic viral hepatitis, comprise a large global burden of disease. 6 Published reports indicate that up to half of adults hospitalized with COVID-19 have abnormal aminotransferase levels and 2%-11% have underlying liver conditions. 7-12 A meta-analysis of 11 observational studies of 2034 adults with COVID-19 from China revealed an overall CLD prevalence of 3%. 13 However, there are limited reports on the nature of liver disease among COVID-19 patients and it remains unclear how underlying CLD influences hepatic injury and clinical outcomes in these patients. Higher rates of liver dysfunction have been observed in patients with more severe cases of COVID-19 and among those requiring admission to the intensive care unit (ICU). 12,14 Given the high prevalence of NAFLD in the USA, as well as metabolic syndrome and

INTRODUCTION: Although coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has been associated with gastrointestinal manifestations, its effect on the pancreas remains unclear. We aimed to assess the frequency and characteristics of hyperlipasemia in patients with COVID-19. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of hospitalized patients across 6 US centers with COVID-19. RESULTS: Of 71 patients, 9 (12.1%) developed hyperlipasemia, with 2 (2.8%) greater than 3 times upper limit of normal. No patient developed acute pancreatitis. Hyperlipasemia was not associated with poor outcomes or symptoms. DISCUSSION: Although a mild elevation in serum lipase was observed in some patients with COVID-19, clinical acute pancreatitis was not seen.

No abstract

Background and study aims Endoscopic ultrasound-guided gastroenterostomy (EUS-GE) is a novel endoscopic procedure designed to facilitate sustained luminal patency in patients with gastric outlet obstruction. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of EUS-GE for treatment of gastric outlet obstruction. Methods Searches of PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases were performed through April 2019. Patients with benign and malignant gastric outlet obstruction were included. Measured outcomes included: immediate technical and clinical success as well as rate of serious adverse events (AEs). Heterogeneity was assessed with Cochran Q test and I 2 statistics. Publication bias was ascertained by funnel plot and Egger regression testing. Results A total of five studies (n = 199 patients; 45.73 % male) were included in this study. Four retrospective studies and one prospective study were analyzed. Mean age of patients that underwent the EUS-GE procedure was 64.52 ± 1.37 years with a pooled mean follow-up period of 4.32 ± 1.65 months. In 21 % of patients (n = 43), gastric outlet obstruction was due to benign causes. Immediate technical success was 92.90 % (95 % CI; 88.26 – 95.79; I2 = 0.00 %) and reported in all studies. The clinical success rate of EUS-GE was 90.11 % (95 % CI; 84.64 – 93.44; I2 = 0.00 %). Serious AEs occurred in 5.61 % (95 % CI; 2.87 – 10.67; I2 = 1.67 %) of cases and were related to peritonitis, perforation, bleeding, and abdominal pain. Re-intervention rate was 11.43 % (95 % CI; 7.29 – 17.46; I2 = 17.38 %). Conclusions EUS-GE appears to provide an effective and safe minimally invasive alternative for treatment of benign and malignant gastric outlet obstruction.

Single-operator cholangioscopy with targeted biopsies appears to be the most accurate ERCP-based modality for diagnosing cholangiocarcinoma in primary sclerosing cholangitis. However, future large, well-designed comparative diagnostic studies are warranted to validate these findings.

Vanishing bile duct syndrome (VBDS) has been described in different pathologic conditions including infection, ischemia, adverse drug reactions, autoimmune diseases, allograft rejection, and humoral factors associated with malignancy. It is an acquired condition characterized by progressive destruction and loss of the intra-hepatic bile ducts leading to cholestasis. Prognosis is variable and partially dependent upon the etiology of bile duct injury. Irreversible bile duct loss leads to significant ductopenia, biliary cirrhosis, liver failure, and death. If biliary epithelial regeneration occurs, clinical recovery may occur over a period of months to years. VBDS has been described in a number of cases of patients with Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) where it is thought to be a paraneoplastic phenomenon. This case describes a 25-year-old man found on liver biopsy to have VBDS. Given poor response to medical treatment, the patient underwent transplant evaluation at that time and was found to have classical stage IIB HL. Early recognition of this underlying cause or association of VBDS, including laboratory screening, and physical exam for lymphadenopathy are paramount to identifying potential underlying VBDS-associated malignancy. Here we review the literature of HL-associated VBDS and report a case of diagnosed HL with biopsy proven VBDS.