Recent steroid use and the relapse risk in ulcerative colitis patients with endoscopic healing.

BACKGROUND: Endoscopic healing (EH) is a therapeutic target in ulcerative colitis (UC). However, even patients who have achieved EH relapse frequently. AIMS: To investigate the association between recent steroid use and relapse risk in UC patients with EH. METHODS: This multi-centre cohort study included 1212 UC patients with confirmed EH (Mayo endoscopic subscore ≤1). We excluded patients with current systemic steroid use or history of advanced therapy. We divided patients into a recent steroid group (last systemic steroid use within 1 year; n = 59) and a non-recent or steroid-naïve group (n = 1153). We followed the patients for 2 years to evaluate relapse, defined as induction of systemic steroids or advanced therapy. We used logistic regression to estimate the odds ratio (OR) of relapse. RESULTS: Relapse occurred in 28.8% of the recent steroid group and 5.6% of the non-recent/steroid-naïve group (multi-variable-adjusted OR 5.53 [95% CI 2.85-10.7]). The risk of relapse decreased with time since the last steroid use: 28.8% for less than 1 year after steroid therapy, 22.9% for 1 year, 16.0% for 2 years and 7.9% beyond 3 years, approaching 4.0% in steroid-naïve patients. (ptrend <0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Even for patients with UC who achieved EH, the risk of relapse remains high following recent steroid therapy. Physicians need to consider the duration since last steroid use to stratify the relapse risk in UC patients with EH.

Immunomodulators after the discontinuation of anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha antibody treatment and relapse in ulcerative colitis: A multicenter cohort study.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Strategies to reduce relapse using immunomodulators (IMs) after discontinuing anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) antibody treatment are controversial in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). In this study, we assessed the association between IMs after discontinuing anti-TNF-α antibody treatment and relapse in patients with UC. METHODS: This retrospective, multicenter cohort study included 257 patients with UC in clinical remission. These patients discontinued anti-TNF-α antibody treatment between June 2010 and March 2019 and were followed up until March 2020. We evaluated the differences in relapse rates between patients with IMs (IM group) and those without IMs (non-IM group) after discontinuing the treatment. Relapse was defined as further undergoing an induction treatment or colectomy. Cox proportional hazards models adjusted for confounders were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for relapse. Exploratory analyses were performed to identify other factors that could predict relapse. RESULTS: During the median follow-up period of 22 months (interquartile range: 10-41), 114 relapses occurred: 42/100 (42.0%) in the IM group and 72/157 (45.9%) in the non-IM group. In the multivariable analysis, IMs were not associated with relapse (HR, 0.95 [95% CI, 0.64-1.41]). In the exploratory analyses, discontinuation due to side effects (HR, 1.83 [95% CI, 1.18-2.82]) and younger age (HR, 0.99 [95% CI, 0.98-1.00]) predicted relapse. CONCLUSION: Immunomodulators were not associated with relapse after discontinuing anti-TNF-α antibody treatment in patients with UC. Careful patient follow-up is needed when discontinuing due to side effects or when the patient is of a younger age at the time of discontinuation.

Anxiety and behavioral changes in Japanese patients with inflammatory bowel disease due to COVID-19 pandemic: a national survey.

BACKGROUND: Given the increasing health concerns for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, we investigated the impact of the pandemic on the anxiety and behavioral changes in Japanese patients with IBD. METHODS: We analyzed 3032 questionnaires from patients with IBD, aged 16 years or older visiting 30 hospitals and 1 clinic between March 2020 and June 2021. The primary outcome was the score of the anxiety experienced by patients with IBD during the pandemic. RESULTS: Participants reported a median age of 44 years; 43.3% of the patients were women. Moreover, 60.6% and 39.4% were diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, respectively, with a median disease duration of 10 years. Participants indicated an average of disease-related anxiety score of 5.1 ± 2.5 on a ten-point scale, with a tendency to increase, 1 month after the number of infected persons per population increased. The top three causes for anxiety were the risk of contracting COVID-19 during hospital visits, SARS-CoV-2 infection due to IBD, and infection by IBD medication. Factors associated with anxiety were gender (women), being a homemaker, hospital visit timings, mode of transportation (train), use of immunosuppressive drugs, and nutritional therapy. Most patients continued attending their scheduled hospital visits, taking their medications, experienced the need for a family doctor, and sought guidance and information regarding COVID-19 from primary doctors, television, and Internet news. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with IBD experienced moderate disease-related anxiety due to the pandemic and should be proactively informed about infectious diseases to relieve their anxiety.

Treatment Result of the Mucopexy-Recto Anal Lifting Method for Hemorrhoids in Comparison with Ligation and Excision, and Aluminum Potassium Sulfate and Tannic Acid Sclerotherapy.

The outcomes of Mucopexy-Recto Anal Lifting (MuRAL) in hemorrhoid surgery were compared with ligation and excision (LE), and aluminum potassium sulfate and tannic acid sclerotherapy (ALTA). In this study, we conducted a 3-year follow-up study of MuRAL (380 cases) and compared it with LE (1417 cases) and ALTA (541 cases) performed at the same period. Operative time, mean hospital stay, postoperative pain, postoperative complications, and recurrence were compared and examined retrospectively. The mean operative time was the longest for MuRAL, followed by LE, and then ALTA at 29.1, 21.5, and 12.4 minutes, and the mean length of hospital stay was 6.2, 10.6, and 1.3, days, respectively. Based on the frequency of injectable analgesic use, postoperative pain was clearly milder in MuRAL and ALTA than in LE. The recurrence rates were 3.2% with MuRAL, 1.1% with LE, and 12.4% with ALTA. Early postoperative low-grade fever and bowel movement urgency were observed in all surgeries, but these were minor and did not pose a safety problem. LE is painful and requires prolonged hospitalization but is the most curative; ALTA is simple and can be performed as a day surgery but has a high recurrence rate. MuRAL was less painful than LE and had a lower recurrence rate than ALTA. In recent years, there have been various innovations in the surgical treatment of hemorrhoids, and choosing a technique that is appropriate for the condition of the hemorrhoid and patient's needs is necessary. MuRAL can be one of the options for hemorrhoid treatment as a "cure without cutting" method.

Infliximab therapy intensification based on endoscopic activity is related to suppress treatment discontinuation in patients with Crohn disease: A retrospective cohort study.

ABSTRACT: Administering double doses of infliximab or shortening its dosing interval for patients with Crohn disease who experience a loss of response to treatment is an accepted treatment method; however, the effectiveness and appropriate timing of treatment intensification remain unclear. We examined the treatment outcomes of patients with Crohn disease receiving infliximab therapy intensification.Among 430 patients with Crohn disease who were seen at our related facilities from July 2002 to July 2018, 46 patients (30 men and 16 women) who were followed up for diminished infliximab effects for >1 year after therapy intensification were included in this study. The relationship between patient background and continuation of therapy intensification was retrospectively examined through a logistic regression analysis.Among the 46 patients, 67.4% (31 cases) continued therapy intensification for 12 months. The treatment discontinuation rate after 12 months (7.1% vs 43.8%, P = .015) and the C-reactive protein levels at the start of therapy intensification (P = .0050) were significantly lower in the group in which treatment was strengthened due to remaining endoscopic findings (n = 14) than that due to clinical symptoms (n = 32). There was no significant difference in the rates of treatment discontinuation after 12 months of treatment strengthening between patients receiving double doses (n = 34) and those with shortened dosing intervals (n = 12).Infliximab treatment discontinuation seems to be less likely to occur in patients with Crohn disease who are receiving infliximab treatment intensification based on endoscopic findings of exacerbations than in patients whose treatment is based on clinical symptoms.

Diagnostic performance of ¹8F-fluorothymidine PET/CT for primary colorectal cancer and its lymph node metastasis: comparison with ¹8F-fluorodeoxyglucose PET/CT.

PURPOSE: To examine the diagnostic performance of (18)F-fluorothymidine (FLT) PET/CT in primary and metastatic lymph node colorectal cancer foci in comparison with (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/CT. METHODS: The study population comprised 28 patients with 30 newly diagnosed colorectal cancers who underwent surgical resection of the primary lesion and regional lymph nodes after both FLT and FDG PET/CT. The associations between SUVmax levels and pathological factors were evaluated using the Mann-Whitney U or Kruskal-Wallis test. Differences in diagnostic indexes for detecting nodal metastasis between the two tracers were estimated using the McNemar exact or χ(2) test. RESULTS: All 30 primary cancers (43.0 ± 20.0 mm, range 14 - 85 mm) were visualized by both tracers, but none of the FLT SUVmax values exceeded the FDG SUVmax values in any of the primary cancers (6.6 ± 2.4 vs. 13.6 ± 5.8, p < 0.001). The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy for detecting nodal metastasis were 41% (15/37), 98.8% (493/499) and 94.8% (508/536) for FDG PET/CT, and 32% (12/37), 98.8% (493/499) and 94.2% (505/536) for FLT PET/CT, respectively. The sensitivity (p = 0.45), specificity (p = 0.68) and accuracy (p = 0.58) were not different between the tracers. Nodal uptake of FLT and FDG was discordant in 7 (19%) of 37 metastatic nodes. There were ten concordant true-positive nodes of which six showed higher FDG SUVmax and four showed higher FLT SUVmax, but the difference between FDG and FLT SUVmax was not significant (5.56 ± 3.55 and 3.62 ± 1.45, respectively; p = 0.22). CONCLUSION: FLT has the same potential as FDG in PET/CT for the diagnosis of primary and nodal foci of colorectal cancer despite significantly lower FLT uptake in primary foci.

Gastric crystal-storing histiocytosis detected with asymptomatic Sjögren's syndrome: report of a case and summary.

Crystal-storing histiocytosis (CSH) localized to the stomach is very rare, with only two cases reported to date. The present patient was a 55-year-old woman with no noteworthy symptoms. An area of discoloration was seen in the greater curvature of the gastric body on upper endoscopy by a local physician, and CSH was strongly suspected on biopsy examination. On upper endoscopy performed at our hospital, a flat, whitish, finely granular membrane with a diameter of 10 mm was seen in the greater curvature of the gastric body on white light observation. On magnifying endoscopy of the focal site, white granular material could be seen in the subepithelium, and the surface layer microvascular architecture image seen below the mucosal subepithelium was similar to the background, suggesting localization of the white material in a deep mucosal layer. On endoscopic ultrasound, this was depicted as multiple hyperechoic spots within the second layer corresponding to the involved area. Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) was performed for a definitive diagnosis. Histopathological assessment of resected specimens revealed infiltration of abundant histiocytes including acidophilic crystalline structured material and positive plasma cells on anti-κ chain immunostaining, and CSH was diagnosed. Since this patient could have had a concomitant background autoimmune or hematologic disease, a systemic search was done. During this search, comorbid Sjögren's syndrome was discovered. This case of asymptomatic Sjögren's syndrome discovered during investigation of very rare gastric CHS is reported.

[Two cases of circumferential rectal invasion from prostatic cancer].

We report two cases of prostatic cancer invading the rectum with circumferential rectal wall thickening. In both cases, reddish and uneven edematous mucosa was observed by colonoscopy and the boundary of the lesion was indistinct. No mass or ulcer formation was not observed. CT scan showed irregular prostatic swelling and circumferential rectal wall thickening adjacent to the prostate. The rectal biopsy specimen showed moderately to poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma, and it was positive on PSA immunostaining. Although rectal invasion of prostatic cancer is relatively rare, it is important to be aware that prostatic cancer can cause circumferential stenosis of the rectum.

[A retrospective endoscopic case of adenoid cystic carcinoma of the esophagus].

We report a case of a 64-year-old Japanese man with adenoid cystic carcinoma. An elevated lesion covered by intact epithelium in the thoracic esophagus was found in September, 2007 and been followed. After dysphagia appeared follow-up endoscopy was performed in January, 2010, and morphological change into a protruding tumor was recognized. Since adenoid cystic carcinoma was detected by endoscopic biopsy, the patient underwent esophageal resection. The resected specimen showed a cribriform pattern and a certain amount of mucous substance which was positive for Alcian blue, within a solid nest. The tumor cells were positive for S-100 protein and negative for αSMA, so the tumor was diagnosed as an adenoid cystic carcinoma.

[A case of eosinophilic gastroenteritis with ring-like discoloration in the lower end of the esophagus].

We report the case of a 15-year-old Japanese boy with eosinophilic gastroenteritis. The patient complained of abdominal pain and watery diarrhea and had a history of allergic rhinitis. Laboratory data on admission showed leukocytosis with remarkable eosinophilia. Microscopic examination of the biopsied specimens taken from the esophagus, stomach, duodenum, lower ileum and colon showed eosinophilic infiltration. Especially in the lower esophagus, there was a ring-like discoloration with remarkable eosinophil infiltration. We diagnosed eosinophilic gastroenteritis and his clinical symptoms and eosinophilia improved following starting corticosteroid therapy. After 5 months therapy with prednisolone, discoloration of upper digestive tract disappeared. There have been no reports describing discoloration in the lower end of the esophagus seen by gastroscopy.

Clinical and endoscopic features of amyloidosis secondary to Crohn's disease: diagnostic value of duodenal observation and biopsy.

AIM: Recent reports have focused on the development of secondary amyloidosis (AMY) as a complication of Crohn's disease (CD). The present study was carried out to investigate the frequency of AMY secondary to CD, its clinical and endoscopic features, and the importance of duodenal biopsy in detecting this disease. METHODS: This study involved 408 patients diagnosed with CD who were endoscopically and histologically examined at our hospital. At follow up, we analyzed the incidence of AMY complications, the clinical features of AMY and the methods to diagnose AMY. RESULTS: The incidence of AMY was 2.5% (10/408). The disease type at the time of CD diagnosis was small and large bowel type (SL) in eight patients, small bowel type in one and large bowel type in one. The incidence of AMY was significantly higher in patients with SL than in patients with other disease types. The length of time from onset of CD to diagnosis of AMY was 14.1 ± 8.0 years. The cumulative incidence of AMY was 1.0% at 10 years and 5.7% at 20 years after onset. In terms of the method used to diagnose AMY, the positive rate of AMY diagnosis was 100% with endoscopic duodenal biopsy. CONCLUSION: The incidence of AMY as a complication of CD was low (2.5%). However, because this complication adversely affects patients' prognoses, it is important to check for the presence of AMY, particularly in the duodenum, in patients for whom more than 10 years have elapsed since the development of CD.

White opaque substance within superficial elevated gastric neoplasia as visualized by magnification endoscopy with narrow-band imaging: a new optical sign for differentiating between adenoma and carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The microvascular pattern (MVP) as visualized by magnification endoscopy (ME) is a reliable marker for differentiating between benign and malignant gastric flat lesions. However, in cases of gastric neoplasia of 0-IIa type, it is sometimes impossible to visualize the MVP because a white opaque substance (WOS) obscures the subepithelial MVP. OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether the morphology of the WOS could be a useful optical sign for discriminating between adenoma and carcinoma. SETTING: Single tertiary referral center. MATERIALS: Forty-six gastric neoplasias of only 0-IIa type (18 adenomas and 28 early carcinomas) were evaluated. INTERVENTION: The prevalence and the morphology of the WOS as visualized by ME with narrow-band imaging (NBI) according to histologic type (adenoma vs carcinoma). MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: The WOS is more frequently present in adenomas than in carcinomas. With regard to the morphology of the WOS, 100% of the examples of WOS within adenomas demonstrated a regular distribution; in contrast, 83% of the examples of WOS within carcinomas showed an irregular distribution. RESULTS: In cases in which a neoplasia of 0-IIa type showed either WOS with a regular distribution or a regular MVP, the sensitivity and specificity for discriminating adenoma from carcinoma were 94% and 96%, respectively. LIMITATIONS: The number of cases was limited. The WOS has not yet been characterized by chemical analysis. CONCLUSION: In cases in which the WOS is observed, rather than assessing the MVP, morphologic analysis of the WOS could be an alternative new optical sign for discriminating adenoma from carcinoma when using ME with NBI.