Archive for gastroenterology
Beware probiotics in ICU patients
It’s become common for patients in the intensive care unit (ICU), both children and adults, to receive probiotics. Often, they are started at home to counteract diarrhea caused by antibiotics. There is also interest in using probiotics proactively in the ICU. A large multicenter clinical trial in Canada is testing whether probiotics would prevent ventilator-associated ... Read More about Beware probiotics in ICU patients
Tagged: critical care, gastroenterology, infectious diseases, probiotics, research, safety
Four ways to manage the impact of cystic fibrosis on the GI system
Cystic fibrosis, a genetic disorder that affects the lungs and other organs, used to be considered a childhood disease with a very high mortality rate. But today, thanks to improvements in screenings, diagnosis, and treatments, as well as a deeper understanding of the importance of managing nutritional status, people with cystic fibrosis are living into ... Read More about Four ways to manage the impact of cystic fibrosis on the GI system
Tagged: gastroenterology, nutrition
Feeding and growth difficulties in children: When to refer
Parents are bombarded with so much online information about the best ways to feed their children the nutrients they need to ensure they grow to the best of their potential. As we know, not everything they read is helpful or even accurate. The best thing you can do for your patient families is regularly plot ... Read More about Feeding and growth difficulties in children: When to refer
Pioneering microbiome findings shed light on aspiration
When children have respiratory infections, clinicians tend to blame gastroesophageal reflux, based on the assumption that bacteria-laden stomach contents rise into the mouth and are then aspirated. As a result, clinicians often recommend a type of anti-reflux surgery called fundoplication to treat these infections. Yet, despite undergoing this procedure, many patients don’t improve. A new ... Read More about Pioneering microbiome findings shed light on aspiration
Tagged: aerodigestive, gastroenterology, microbiome, reflux, research
Rylan’s story: A fixed and full tummy
Our sweet son Rylan cried all of the time as a baby. We were told by our local pediatrician in Texas that he had acid reflux. For the first year of his life, we sat in a rocking chair and rocked him nonstop while he cried. One night, I fell asleep with him on the couch ... Read More about Rylan’s story: A fixed and full tummy
Tagged: gastroenterology, pancreatic disorders
Sweet! How C. difficile toxin A enters intestinal cells
Clostridiodes difficile infection has become a leading cause of severe, sometimes fatal diarrheal illness. It flourishes best in hospitals and long-term care facilities where people are on long-term antibiotic treatment, but it’s also an increasing problem in the community. Much of the damage from C. diff is caused by toxins the bacterium produces, which damage ... Read More about Sweet! How C. difficile toxin A enters intestinal cells
Tagged: gastroenterology, infectious diseases, toxins
Stool transplant found safe, effective for ‘C. diff’ in children
Diarrhea caused by Clostridiodes (formerly Clostridium) difficile infections is on the rise among children; one population-based study found a 12.5-fold increase in incidence from 1991 to 2009. For reasons that aren’t clear, C. difficile is more frequently striking children without the usual risk factors, such as hospitalization or antibiotic exposure. One thing that is known ... Read More about Stool transplant found safe, effective for ‘C. diff’ in children
Lia the ballerina: Off the couch and onto the stage
No matter what 3-year-old Lia is doing — playing dress-up, singing for her family, or running around with her preschool friends — you can be sure she’ll do it with pizzazz. “She’s a total girly girl,” says her mom, Kaitlyn. “She would wear makeup if I let her!” Watching her jump and twirl, you’d never ... Read More about Lia the ballerina: Off the couch and onto the stage
Tagged: celiac disease, gastroenterology
Science Seen: An intestinal toxin’s trick, a potential cancer fighter
Clostridium difficile, also called “C. diff,” causes severe gastrointestinal tract infections and tops the CDC’s list of urgent drug-resistant threats. In work published in Nature in 2016, Min Dong, PhD, and colleagues found the elusive portal that enables a key C. diff toxin, toxin B, to enter the intestines’ outer cells and break down the ... Read More about Science Seen: An intestinal toxin’s trick, a potential cancer fighter
Tagged: cancer, gastroenterology, infectious diseases, toxins
Intestine chip models gut function, in disease and in health
The small intestine is much more than a digestive organ. It’s a major home to our microbiome, it’s a key site where mucosal immunity develops and it provides a protective barrier against a variety of infections. Animal models don’t do justice to the human intestine in all its complexity. Attempts to better model human intestinal function ... Read More about Intestine chip models gut function, in disease and in health
Tagged: gastroenterology, organoids