Background /Aim: The symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome resemble those of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of SIBO and lactose intolerance (LI) occurrence in patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) according to Rome III criteria. Patients and Methods: In this retrospective case-control study, patients over 18 years of age with altered bowel habit, bloating, and patients who had lactose Hydrogen breath test (H ₂ BT) done were included. The "cases" were defined as patients who fulfill Rome III criteria for IBS-D, while "controls" were those having chronic nonspecific diarrhea (CNSD) who did not fulfill Rome III criteria for IBS-D. Demographic data, predominant bowel habit pattern, concurrent use of medications, etc., were noted. Results: Patients with IBS-D were 119 (51%) with a mean age of 35 ± 13 years, while those with CNSD were 115 (49%) with mean age 36 ± 15 years. Patients in both IBS-D and CNSD were comparable in gender, with male 87 (74%) and female 77 (64%). SIBO was documented by lactose H ₂ BT in 32/234 (14%) cases. It was positive in 22/119 (19%) cases with IBS-D, while 10/115 (9%) cases had CNSD (P = 0.03). LI was positive in 43/234 (18%) cases. Of these, 25/119 (21%) cases had IBS-D and 18/115 (16%) cases had CNSD (P = 0.29). Conclusion: SIBO was seen in a significant number of our patients with IBS-D. There was no significant age or gender difference in patients with or without SIBO.

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Background/Aim: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a clinical condition characterized by central obesity, elevated triglycerides, low-high density lipoproteins, impaired fasting glucose, and hypertension. There is insufficient data on the prevalence of MetS in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This study sought to determine the prevalence of MetS in a Turkish cohort of patients with IBD and the association between insulin resistance (IR) and the MetS parameters, in this population. Patients and Methods: A total of 177 patients over 18 years of age (62 with Crohn's disease (CD) and 115 with ulcerative colitis (UC)) were enrolled in the study. The presence of at least three criteria of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) was accepted for the diagnosis of MetS. The Homeostasis Model Assessment (HOMA) was used to determine IR. HOMA values < 1 were considered normal and values > 2.5 indicated a high probability of IR. Results: MetS frequency was higher in patients n=34 (29.5%) with UC than in patients n=11 (17.7%) with CD (P < 0.01). MetS was detected in 12 of the 117 patients (10.3%) with IBD, under 45 years of age, and in 33 of 60 patients (55%) over 45 years of age. HOMA value in n=31 patients (27%) with UC was > 2.5. Body mass index, insulin (P < 0.001), waist circumference, fasting plasma glucose, leukocyte count (P < 0.01), triglycerides, C-reactive protein, and uric acid values (P < 0.05) were significantly higher in UC patients with IR than those without IR. Conclusion: Frequent occurrence of MS with increasing age in IBD, particularly in UC, showed the importance of early diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease risk factors in the long-term follow-up of these diseases.

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Background/Aim: Microscopic colitis (MC) is diagnosed when a patient with chronic watery non-bloody diarrhea (CWND) has an endoscopically normal colon, but colonic biopsies show unique inflammatory changes characteristic of lymphocytic or collagenous colitis. MC is a disorder of unknown etiology. Studies comparing the prevalence of the disease in developing countries as compared to developed countries may shed more light on the possibility of a post-infectious etiology. Most data on the incidence and prevalence of MC are from developed countries where it accounts for 4-13% of cases of CWND. There are only a few reports from developing countries. Two studies from Peru and Tunis, with high prevalence of infectious gastroenteritis, revealed MC in 40% and 29.3% of cases of CWND, respectively. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of MC in patients presenting with CWND in Egypt. Materials and Methods: A total of 44 patients with CWND of unexplained etiology who had undergone full colonoscopy with no macroscopic abnormalities between January 2000 and January 2010 were assessed retrospectively. Results: The histological appearance of MC was identified in 22 (50%) patients. Twelve (55%) patients were male and 10 (45%) female. Mean age was 40 years (range: 20-65 years). Twenty (91%) of MC cases had lymphocytic colitis and 2 (9%) had collagenous colitis. Conclusions: The prevalence of MC in Egyptian patients with CWND is high when compared to that in developed countries. MC mainly affects young and middle-aged patients and it is more commonly of the lymphocytic type.

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Background/Aim : To determine the mortality rate in a cohort of hospitalized patients with cirrhosis and examine their resuscitation status at admission. Materials and Methods : A retrospective chart review was conducted of patients with cirrhosis who were admitted to a tertiary care hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from January 1, 2009, to December 31, 2009. Results: We reviewed 226 cirrhotic patients during the study period. The hospital mortality rate was 35%. A univariate analysis revealed that worse outcomes were seen in patients with advanced age or who had worse child-turcotte-pugh (CPT) scores, worse model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) scores, low albumin and high serum creatinine. Using a multivariate analysis, we found that advanced age (P=0.004) and high MELD (P=0.001) scores were independent risk factors for the mortality of cirrhotic patients. The end-of-life decision were made in 34% of cirrhotic patients, and the majority of deceased patients were "no resuscitation" status (90% vs. 4%, P<0.001). Conclusions : The relatively high mortality in cirrhotic patients admitted for care in a tertiary hospital, Saudi Arabia was comparable to that reported in the literature. Furthermore, end-of-life discussions should be addressed early in the hospitalization of cirrhotic patients.

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Background/Aim: Enterocutaneous fistula (ECF) is a difficult condition managed in the surgical wards and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Sepsis, malnutrition, and electrolyte abnormality is the classical triad of complications of ECF. Sepsis with malnutrition is the leading cause of death in cases of ECF. Although it is a common condition, no recent report in literature on the profile of patients with ECF has been documented from the southern part of India. Materials and Methods: All consecutive patients who developed or presented with ECF during the study period were included in the study. The etiology, anatomic distribution, fistula output, clinical course, complications, predictive factors for spontaneous closure, and outcomes for patients with ECF were studied. Results: A total of 41 patients were included in this prospective observational study, of which 34 were males and 7 were females. About 95% of ECF were postoperative. Ileum was found to be the most common site of ECF. Also, 49% of fistulas were high output and 51% were low output. Serum albumin levels correlated significantly with fistula healing and mortality. Surgical intervention was required in 41% of patients. Conclusion: Most of the ECF are encountered in the postoperative period. Serum albumin levels can predict fistula healing and mortality. Conservative management should be the first line of treatment. Mortality in patients with ECF continues to be significant and is commonly related to malnutrition and sepsis.

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Background/Aim: Resistance to clarithromycin in H. pylori isolates is accepted as a main cause of treatment failure in developing countries. We aimed to determine the prevalence of clarithromycin-resistant strains isolated from dyspeptic patients in northern Iran, furthermore we aimed to assess the relationship between clinical outcomes of infection with point mutations. Materials and Methods: A total of 147 consecutive patients infected with H. pylori were included for determining the status of resistant H. pylori strains. With upper gastroscopy, three antral biopsies were taken from each patient, first section for rapid urea test, second for pathology and third section was used for bacterial culture in microbiologic lab. The antimicrobial susceptibility tests in this examination were agar dilution, in accordance with clinical and laboratory standards institue guidelines. Restriction fragment length polymorphism-PCR (RFLP-PCR) method was applied to determine the frequency of point mutations in 23s rRNA gene. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software (15.0) (SPSS, Inc., Chicago, Ill). Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests were applied to our analysis. A P value less than 5% was considered as statistically significant. Results: Our results showed that there was no point mutation in clarithromycin-susceptible strains of H. pylori. Conclusion: The important findings in our study indicate that A2143G is the most prevalent point mutation (30/32: 93.7%) attributed in clarithromycin resistance among the H. pylori strains. The current study concluded that clarithromycin could still be involved in the empirical treatment of H. pylori infection, although a high frequency of A2143G mutation may increase the concerns regarding treatment failure.

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An enterolith is a mixed concretion formed in GIT, usually rare in humans. Primary enteroliths are formed in small bowel, typically within a diverticulum and secondary enteroliths in gallbladder. This case report highlights the presence of an enterocolic fistula; probably a postradiotherapy complication; and an enterolith without associated small bowel or colonic diverticuli. We have discussed the various diagnostic modalities used to reach a preoperative diagnosis of this rare condition. Imaging plays an important role in the detection and management of acquired gastrointestinal fistulas. The more routine use of cross-sectional imaging (especially computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging) has altered the standard sequence of radiologic evaluation for possible fistulas, but fluoroscopic studies remain a valuable complement, especially for confirming and defining the anomalous communications.

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Primary squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of ampulla has seldom been reported. However, metastatic SCC to ampulla of Vater is well known. We report a case of primary SCC of ampulla of Vater coexistent with well-differentiated adenocarcinoma of the distal pancreatic duct. A 50-year-old female presented with evidence of obstructive jaundice. Endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography revealed bulging papilla with ulcero-infiltrative growth at the ampulla of Vater. An initial endoscopic biopsy of the ampullary mass showed a well-differentiated SCC. The patient underwent Whipple's operation. Thorough sampling of the dilated portion of the pancreatic duct showed presence of well-differentiated adenocarcinoma of the distal pancreatic duct. Immunohistochemical study with synaptophysin and chromogranin was done with negative result, ruling out neuroendocrine differentiation. Also, a detailed clinical, endoscopic and radiological examination was carried out, that excluded the presence of primary SCC elsewhere.

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Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic idiopathic inflammatory disorder of colon. Frequency of UC is gradually increasing over few years worldwide. Prevalence is 35 to 100/100 000 people in USA, 1% of them are infants. UC develops in a genetically predisposed individual with altered intestinal immune response. An eight-month-old girl presented with loose bloody stool, growth failure, and moderate pallor. The girl was diagnosed as a case of UC by colonoscopy and biopsy. Treatment was thereafter started with immunosuppressive drugs. After initial induction therapy with parenteral steroid and infliximab, the patient is now on remission with azathioprine and mesalamine. UC is rare in Bangladesh, especially in children, and it is rarer during infancy. Several conditions like infective colitis, allergic colitis, Meckel's diverticulitis, Crohn's disease, etc. may mimic the features of UC. So, if a child presents with recurrent bloody diarrhea, UC should be considered as differential diagnosis.

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Background/Aim: A prospective longitudinal study was conducted to describe short-term outcome and quality of life (QOL) of endoscopically placed gastric balloon (EPGB) and laparoscopic adjustable gastric band (LAGB). Materials and Methods: Forty seven consecutive patients with body mass index (BMI) of 42 to 72 kg/m ² were assigned to undergo EPGB (n=17) or LAGB (n=30) between May 2008 and May 2010. The main measured outcomes included weight loss, resolution or improvement of comorbidities, hospital stay, complications and QOL. Results: Patients were followed up for a mean of 14 months. Hospital stay was shorter for EPGB patients (one versus two days, P<0.001). Early postoperative complications recorded in EPGB were minor including nausea and vomiting. No late complications were recorded in the EPGB group. One case of band slippage was reported in the LAGB group and fixed laparoscopically. Percent excess weight loss was less in EPGB compared to LAGB (26.2% versus 44.0%, P=0.004). Resolution or improvement of comorbidities was comparable in both groups. The globally impaired preoperative quality of life showed considerable improvement in both groups. Conclusion: EPGB is a safe and effective approach in short-term management of morbid obesity. Weight loss, resolution of comorbidities and improvement in QOL were comparable between both groups.

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Background/Aim: The frequency of sexual dysfunction (SD) is not well known in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV). In spite of the fact that histological benefits of peginterferon (Peg-IFN)/ribavirin therapy are well established, the effects on sexual health are less certain. To assess the prevalence of the SD and explore its relevance to histopathologic changes and Peg-IFN treatment. Materials and Methods: The study included 100 HCV males; all the patients completed questionnaires to assess their sexual function before and during the treatment. Results: Before treatment, SD was reported only by 12 (19.4%) and 10 (29.4%) patients of early and advanced liver fibrosis, respectively. SD during HCV treatment (with Peg-IFN and ribavirin) for liver fibrosis was significant, as 24 (70.6%) out of 34 (100%) of HCV patients had advanced fibrosis but only 20 (32.3%) out of 62 (100%) patients had early fibrosis and were sexually affected (P = 0.01). SD before treatment was found in 22 (22%) patients; 16 (16%) were >40 years old and 6 (6%) patients were ≤40 years old. SD showed highly significant (P = 0.001) difference prior to and during treatment. Pre treatment, 78 (78%) patients denied any SD and only 22 (22%) were sexually affected, while during treatment, the number of patients who were sexually affected rose to 44 (44%). The rest of the group [56 (56%)] did not report any sexual impairment. Conclusion: SD was noticed during Peg-IFN and ribavirin treatment in patients with advanced liver fibrosis. Age and advanced liver fibrosis were important factors in inducing SD. This is of key importance for clinical practice as it modifies the management of HCV patients.

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