Retrospective study of 189 cases of acute perforated peptic ulcer: safety and efficacy of over-the-scope-clip based endoscopic closure.

BACKGROUND: To compare the clinical outcomes in patients with acute perforated peptic ulcer (PPU) treated with over-the-scope clip (OTSC), non-surgical, and surgical interventions, and to explore the effectiveness and safety of OTSC closure. METHODS: Hospital stay, antibiotic use, diet resumption time, and mortality rate were analyzed retrospectively. Binary Logistic regression analysis was used to identify the risk factors influencing PPU complicated with sepsis. RESULTS: Patients were divided into three treatment groups: OTSC (n = 62), non-surgical (n = 72), and surgical (n = 55) groups. The median time (IQR) from symptom onset to admission was 9.0 (4-23) h. 88.71% (55/62) of the patients in In the OTSC group underwent OTSC closure within 24 h (median [IQR] time: 14.5 [7.00-30.25] h). The perforation diameters in the OTSC and surgical groups were 9.87 mm ± 5.97 mm and 8.55 mm ± 6.17 mm, respectively. The median (IQR) hospital stays in the OTSC (9.50 [7.00-12.25] days) and non-surgical group (9.00[7.00-13.00]days) were similar (p > 0.05), but shorter than that in surgical group (12.00[10.00-16.00]days), (p < 0.05). The median duration of antibiotic use was shorter in the OTSC group (7.00[3.00-10.00]) than in the non-surgical group (9.00[7.00-11.00]) and surgical group (11.00[9.00-13.00]) ( p < 0.05); and the time to resume oral feeding was shorter in the OTSC group (4.00[2.00-5.25]) than in the non-surgical group (7.00[6.13-9.00]) and surgical group (8.00[6.53-10.00]), respectively ( p < 0.05). No mortality difference among groups (p = 0.109) was found. Lower albumin level at admission, older age, and elevated creatinine levels were associated with increased sepsis risk, with OR(95%CI) of 0.826 (0.687-0.993), 1.077 (1.005-1.154), and 1.025 (1.006-1.043), respectively (all p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: OTSC closure improves clinical outcomes of acute PPU patients without sepsis. Age, hypoalbuminemia, and baseline renal dysfunction increase the risk of sepsis, while mortality was associated with sepsis and multiorgan dysfunction.

Advances in the endoscopic management of gastric varices.

This review provides an overview of the treatment options available for gastric varices (GV) with a focus on endoscopic methods. Various minimally invasive techniques, including endoscopic band ligation, endoscopic cyanoacrylate injection, and transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt, can be applied to the treatment of GV. Endoscopic cyanoacrylate injection is now recognized as a first-line treatment for GV. Endoscopic ultrasound-guided cyanoacrylate injection combined with coils has shown good security and effectiveness. Thrombin injection therapy is a promising treatment, with a similar hemostasis rate to cyanoacrylate injection but with fewer serious complications. With the deepening understanding of the hemodynamics of the GV system, various treatment methods and their combination are gradually evaluated to provide patients with safer and more effective treatment options.

N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids protect esophageal epithelial cells from acid exposure.

Our previous study showed that n-3 PUFAs inhibited inflammation in rats with esophagitis. This study aimed to observe the protective effect of n-3 PUFAs against acid damage to esophageal epithelial cells (Het-1A cells) and to explore its mechanism. The level of malondialdehyde (MDA) was increased by acid exposure, while that of superoxide dismutase (SOD) was decreased. In groups with different ratios of n-6/n-3 PUFAs, the expression levels of nuclear factor E2 related factor 2 (Nrf2) and SOD were increased with increasing proportions of n-3 PUFAs and were highest in the 1:1 group. Compared with those in the 9:1 group, the expression of NOD like receptor pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) and caspase-1 and the pyroptosis rate in the 1:1 group were decreased. Intervention with an Nrf2 agonist increased the expression of Nrf2 and decreased the expression of NLRP3 and caspase-1 and the pyroptosis rate. However, inhibiting Nrf2 expression led to the opposite result. In conclusion, n-3 PUFAs protected esophageal epithelial cells from acid damage by upregulating Nrf2 expression, which disrupted oxidative stress and NLRP3 inflammasome activation and inhibited pyroptosis.

Effect of Endoscopic Appendix Intubation and Irrigation on Acute Uncomplicated Appendicitis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the efficacy and safety of endoscopic appendix intubation and irrigation (EAI) on acute uncomplicated appendicitis. METHODS: This prospective non-randomized study examined 169 patients with suspected acute uncomplicated appendicitis at The First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University from October 2015 to 2017. Patients were divided into three groups: endoscopic appendix intubation and irrigation (EAI, n = 18), laparoscopic appendectomy (LA, n = 87), and antibiotic alone (A, n = 64). The treatment success rate, duration of hospitalization, medical costs, operation time, duration of abdominal pain, fasting time, complications, and recurrence were analyzed. RESULTS: The three groups had no significant differences in baseline characteristics (age, gender, Alvarado score, white blood cell count, and neutrophil count; all P > 0.05). Compared to the LA group, the EAI group had shorter durations of the operation, fasting, and abdominal pain; less use of oral and intravenous antibiotics; and lower medical costs (all P < 0.05). Compared to the A group, the EAI group had shorter durations of abdominal pain and hospitalization, and less use of intravenous antibiotics (all P < 0.05). The EAI group had no complications, but 3 patients (3.4%) in the LA group had surgery-related complications. CONCLUSION: EAI is a safe and effective treatment for acute uncomplicated appendicitis. Patients who received EAI had shorter durations of abdominal pain and hospitalization than those who received LA or conservative antibiotic treatment. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER AND AGENCY: ChiCTR-IPN-15006565, Chinese Clinical Trial Registry.

Effect of hydraulic retention time, ZVI concentration, and Fe2+ concentration on autotrophic denitrification efficiency with iron cycle bacterium strain CC76.

The immobilized reactor of iron-reducing bacteria and zero-valent iron (ZVI) integrated system was established. This study has shown that the effects of hydraulic retention times (9, 11, 13 h), ZVI concentrations (2, 4, 6, 8 mg/L), and Fe2+ concentrations (5, 10, 15 mg/L) on the denitrification characteristics of iron cycle bacterium strain CC76. The results show that the longer the HRT is, the stronger ability of bacteria to remove nitrate. When ZVI concentration was 4 mg/L and the Fe2+ concentration is 15 mg/L, the removal efficiency of nitrate was the highest, reaching the maximum value of 93.02% (1.07 mg/L/h). Since increasing ZVI concentration in a certain range can not only promote chemical reduction but also make use of strain CC76 as an electron donor. Also, the abundance of strain CC76 decreased with the increase of ZVI concentration, which indicated that adding a low concentration of ZVI could reduce the inhibitory effect on bacteria. Hypothesis analysis of principal components showed that a low concentration of ZVI is beneficial to increase nitrate removal rate. Community structure analysis indicated that strain CC76 and related bacteria were the most abundant bacteria in the reactor.

Over-the-scope-clip applications for perforated peptic ulcer.

AIM: To investigate the effectiveness of over-the-scope-clip (OTSC)-based endoscopic closure in patients with perforated peptic ulcer (PPU). METHODS: One hundred six patients diagnosed with PPU were treated with either OTSC (n = 26) or conservative treatments (n = 80), respectively. The outcome assessments included technical success rate, clinical success rate, post-treatment complications after 1 month, mortality rate, time to resume oral feeding, length of hospital stay, and the administration of antibiotics. RESULTS: In the OTSC group, technical and clinical success was achieved in 100% of patients without any complications, including death, incomplete closure, duodenal obstruction, and gastrointestinal bleeding, with a median operation time of 10 min. All patients in the OTSC group were discharged, while the mortality rate in the control group was 13.8%. Subsequent surgeries were required in 30% of patients in the control group. The median times to resume oral feeding were 3.5 (interquartile range [IQR] 2.0-5.25) days in the OTSC group and 7.0 (IQR 5.0-9.0) days in the control group (p < 0.001). One month post-procedure, 30% (24/80) of patients in the control group and 0 (0/26) in the OTSC group required additional operations (p < 0.001). No significant difference was found in the length of the hospital stay and the administration of antibiotics between the two groups (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: OTSC-based endoscopic technique, with a high clinical success rate and a shorter time to resume oral feeding, was effective in achieving closure of PPU with a diameter < 15 mm.

Microbial community analysis of simultaneous ammonium removal and Fe3+ reduction at different influent ammonium concentrations.

This study investigates the impacts of influent ammonium concentrations on the microbial community in immobilized heterotrophic ammonium removal system. Klebsiella sp. FC61, the immobilized species, has the ability to perform simultaneous ammonium removal and Fe3+ reduction. It was found that average ammonium removal rate decreased from 0.308 to 0.157 mg/L/h, as the influent NH4+-N was reduced from 20 to 10 mg/L. Meanwhile, at a total Fe3+ concentration of 20 mg/L, the average Fe3+ reduction removal efficiency and rate decreased from 44.61% and 0.18 mg/L/h, to 27.10% and 0.11 mg/L/h, respectively. High-throughput sequencing was used to observe microbial communities in bioreactor Samples B1, B2, and B3, after exposure to different influent NH4+-N conditions. Results show that higher influent NH4+-N concentrations increased microbial richness and diversity and that Klebsiella sp. FC61 play a functional role in the simultaneous removal of NH4+-N and Fe3+ reduction in bioreactor systems.