Prognostic scores in primary biliary cholangitis.

Aim: Evaluating prognostic scores' utility in predicting ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) biochemical response (BR) and long-term liver-related complications in primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) patients. Patients & methods: This retrospective single-center study included 50 predominantly female PBC patients (median age: 56) on UDCA treatment. BR was defined by Paris II criteria. Liver-related complications during a median 76-month follow-up were assessed. APRI, ALBI, Mayo, GLOBE and UK-PBC scores were calculated. Results: 64% achieved BR, while 40% experienced liver-related complications. All scores showed good BR prediction (concordance statistics: 0.76-0.94) and excellent negative predictive values for 5-year liver complications (concordance statistics: 0.73-0.89). Conclusion: Implementing these scores in clinical practice is encouraged due to their effectiveness in predicting BR- and liver-related events.

Prognostic scores in PBC patients on UDCA (APRI, ALBI, Mayo, GLOBE, UK-PBC), good predictors of treatment response and liver-related events. Their clinical use is encouraged. #PBC #MedicalResearch #Prognosis #UDCA.

Development of a Web Application based on Machine Learning for screening esophageal varices in cirrhosis.

INTRODUCTION: Esophageal varices (EV) are a common manifestation of portal hypertension in cirrhotic patients. Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy (UGE) is the gold standard for diagnosing EV. However, it is an invasive examination with a relatively high cost. AIM: To develop a machine learning model for the prediction of EV in cirrhotic patients. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional observational study including all cirrhotic patients, for whom an UGE was performed, between January 2010 and December 2019. We adopted a structured methodical approach with reference to CRISP-DM (Cross-Industry Standard Process for Data Mining). The different steps carried out were: data collection and preparation, modelization, and deployment of the predictive models in a web application. RESULTS: We included 166 patients, 92 women (55.4%) and 74 men (44.6%). The mean age was 57.2 years. In UGE, 16 patients (9.6%) did not have EV. Other patients had EV grade 1 in 41 cases (24.7%), grade 2 in 81 cases (24.7%) and grade 3 in 28 cases (16.9%). After the selection phase, among the 36 initial variables, 19 were retained. Three machine learning models have been developed with a performance of 90%. CONCLUSIONS: We developed a machine learning model combining several clinical and para-clinical variables for the prediction of EV in cirrhotic patients.

East-central Tunisian patients with colorectal adenocarcinoma: a comparative study of the clinicopathological features between patients under 50 years of age and older patients.

INTRODUCTION: Colorectal cancer is a major public health problem. In younger patients, its incidence continues to rise and its prognosis appears to be worse. Its treatment is based on curative surgery associated with neo-adjuvant and adjuvant therapies. AIM: To describe the clinical and pathological characteristics of colorectal cancers in young patients. METHODS: In this monocentric cohort study, we retrospectively analyzed the clinicopathological features in colorectal cancer patients who underwent treatment from 2002 to 2014. Data of younger (group A, ≤50years) vs older (group B, >50years) patients were compared. RESULTS: Two hundred and sixty-six patients met inclusion and non-inclusion criteria. The younger and older groups consisted respectively of 25.2% and 74.8% of patients. Both groups were comparable regarding the symptom presentation and duration. Synchronous tumors were more frequent amongst the group A (10.7% vs 1.0%, p = 0.024). Preoperative staging showed a higher frequency of tumors classified as advanced stage (stages III and IV) in the group A (p = 0.001). The patients of group A were diagnosed with a higher proportion of poorly differentiated or undifferentiated adenocarcinomas (13.4% vs 3.5%, p = 0.005), the mucinous character was also more frequent in the group A (28.4%). According to the pTNM (tumor, nodes and metastases) classification, tumors were more advanced in the group A than in group B (80.6% vs 48.7%, p <0.001). CONCLUSION: This study revealed that colorectal adenocarcinomas in the younger patients, compared to the older ones, were more aggressive with a higher proportion of poorly differentiated or undifferentiated adenocarcinomas, more often mucin production and more advanced tumors.

Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the stomach: A very rare and extremely aggressive tumor; a case report.

Introduction: Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the stomach is a very rare type of malignant gastric tumor characterized by distinct cell morphology.Only six cases have been reported in the literature. We report a case which illustrates the great rapidity of evolution and the aggressiveness of this histological type. Case presentation: A 80-year-old patient was explored for loss of 20 kg and epigastralgia. The explorations showed a non-metastatic antral sarcomatoid carcinoma with celiac necrotic lymphe node. The oncologic comitee decision was surgery straight away without perioperative chemotherapy.4 weeks after his first CT scan the patient was admitted for preparation for surgery. Clinical and morphological examination showed a clear increase in tumor size with associated tumor infection.The patient had distal gastrectomy. The tumor was perforated and locally advanced.The final pathological exams confirmed the histological type. Surgery was R0, but 4 months after surgery, local recurrence compressing gastro intestinal anastomosis was occurred. Clinical discussion: Operative difficulties and rapid recurrence after surgery would have been avoided by faster surgery after diagnosis. However, the surgery time was only 1 month, which illustrates the rapid evolution of sarcomatoid tumors. Conclusion: Sarcomatoid carcinoma is a rare tumor. These tumors can be aggressive with a large tumoral voulume and high rate of locoregional lymph node involvement. Our case illustrate the aggressiveness of this tumor. The benefit of peri-operative treatment is unknown.

Isolated pancreatic tuberculosis mimicking pancreatic cancer in an immunocompetent host: An elusive diagnosis.

Isolated pancreatic tuberculosis is a very rare condition, even in areas of the world where the disease is highly prevalent. We report the case of isolated pancreatic tuberculosis in 54-year-old immunocompetent women, presenting as a solid mass of the pancreatic head with multiple lymphadenopathy mimicking a pancreatic carcinoma. The diagnosis was made with endoscopic ultra sound with fine needle aspiration and the treatment with anti-tuberculosis agents allowed the disappearance of the pancreatic mass and the regional lymphadenopathy. This case emphasizes the diagnostic challenge of this disease based on imaging findings because of a wide range of anomalies as carcinoma like masses, cystic lesions, or abscesses, which makes the Endoscopic ultrasound with fine needle aspiration the diagnostic modality of choice for pancreatic tuberculosis providing tissue samples for staining, cytology, culture, and polymerase chain reaction assay. Through this case we show that it is imperative to suspect pancreatic tuberculosis, as an appropriate treatment with antituberculosis drugs allows full recovery and avoids unnecessary surgery.

Cirrhotic cardiomyopathy.

The presence of cardiocirculatory dysfunction in liver cirrhosis has been described since 1960 and it was exclusively attributed to alcoholic cardiomyopathie. Only in the last two decades, the term of cirrhotic cardiomyopathy (CCM) was introduced to describe cardiac dysfunction in patients with cirrhosis. This entity is currently underdiagnosed because the disease is usually latent and manifests when the patient is under stress. However, overt cardiac failure has been described after transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shun and liver transplantation. The diagnosis of CCM is still difficult to determine because of the lack of specific diagnosis tools. CCM is characterized by systolic dysfunction, diastolic dysfunction and electrophysiological abnormalities. At present, there is no specific treatment outside liver transplantation in the light of increased mortality and postoperative complications.Our review provides an overview of CCM, its definition, prevalence, pathogenic mechanisms, clinical presentation, various explorations and management in light of the most recent published literature.

Gastric diverticula as a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge: Case report and review of literature.

INTRODUCTION: Gastric diverticula are a rare condition characterized by a pouch protruding from the gastric wall. It is commonly asymptomatic and managed without surgery. Gastric diverticulotomy is indicated in the case of symptomatic or complicated diverticula. CASE: The authors report the case of a 67 year-old man presenting with heartburn and dyspepsia with no response to proton pump inhibitors. The patient was diagnosed with a gastric diverticula and a little hiatal hernia, which was subsequently successfully treated with a laparoscopic gastric diverticulectomy and Nissen fundoplication. CONCLUSION: Gastric Diverticula have to be evoked in the absence of response of Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease to therapy or in atypical symptoms. Laparoscopic resection of GD can be safe with resolution of symptoms.

Primary Hepatic Lymphoma in a Patient with Chronic Hepatitis B.

Primary hepatic lymphoma is a rare disease, accounting for only 0.1% of malignant liver tumors. The subtype of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is more infrequent. In contrast to hepatitis C virus, the association between hepatitis B virus and lymphoma is less clear. Here, we report the case of a 52-year-old patient followed for chronic hepatitis B complicated by cirrhosis, associated with a primary hepatic DLBCL, with a good response to chemotherapy.

Candida albicans: a cause or a consequence of esophageal intramural pseudo-diverticulosis.

Esophageal intramural pseudo-diverticulosis is a rare disease of unknown etiology. It is characterized by multiple pseudodiverticula with segmental or diffuse involvement of the esophagus. We report, the case of a 78-year-old male who suffered from severe dysphagia. Diagnosis of esophageal intramural pseudo-diverticulosis was based on endoscopic and radiologic explorations. Histological analysis of esophageal mucosal biopsies has shown the presence of candida albicans. Antifungal treatment leads to spectacular improvement of dysphasia. Subsequently, the patient presented a cardio-respiratory failure and died despite adequate treatment.

Duodenal duplication: a rare cause of abdominal pain in adults.

Duodenal duplication is an extremely rare congenital abnormality that occurs mostly in children. It represents only 2% to 12% of all gastrointestinal tract duplication. Its clinical presentation is highly variable and non-specific making the positive diagnosis very difficult. Imaging modalities can help to detect the lesions making the diagnosis more accurate before surgery. Here, we report a case of duodenal duplication revealed by chronic abdominal pain and treated by surgical resection in a 26-year-old man. Even in adults, it is necessary to evoke the diagnosis of duodenal duplication in patients with unexplained abdominal pain. Surgical resection remains the treatment of choice and endoscopic treatment is reserved for selected patients in whom surgery is difficult.

Anemia revealing a collagenous gastritis in a young Tunisian man.

Collagenous gastritis is a rare entity, characterized by the deposition of a subepithelial collagenous band with an inflammatory infiltrate in the mucosa. We report the first Tunisian case revealed by severe anemia. Lesions were limited to the stomach and remained unchanged on 3 series biopsies during a 24 month follow up despite treatment with corticosteroids. The cause of the disease remains unknown; our findings suggest that lesions of collagenous gastritis may result from a local immune process.

Squamous cell carcinoma of the rectum cured after chemoradiation.

The primary squamous cell carcinoma of the rectum is a rare tumor that presents epidemiological, etiopathogenic and evolutionary characteristics different from those of adenocarcinoma . We report the case of a primary squamous cell  carcinoma well  differentiated  from medium-high   rectal junction in a 59 year old patient treated with a chemoradiation first ,followed by surgical resection. However, the anatomical examination of the  surgical specimen did not show tumoral tissue.

Quality of life in inflammatory bowel disease in Tunisian patients.

BACKGROUND: The management of the health-related quality of life (HRQL) is increasingly considered as an important treatment goal in chronic diseases including inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). AIM: The aim of our study was to determine the impact of IBD on HRQLand identify the factors involved in the deterioration of HRQL in these patients. METHODS: We conducted a case-control study including 108 patients; 66 had Crohn's disease (CD) and 42 had ulcerative colitis (UC). In the measurement of HRQL, we used a general questionnaire "Short Form 36: SF36" and a specific questionnaire "Tunisian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire: T-IBDQ". RESULTS: HRQL of patients was worse than controls with a statistically significant difference for six of the eight dimensions of the SF 36 "Physical Functionning PF", "Role Physical RP", "General health GH","SocialFunctionning SF "," Mental Health MH "and" Role Emotional RE "as well as the Mental summary score (MCS) and the Physical summary score (PCS ) (p <0.05). The factors involved in the alteration of HRQL were: age <30 years, poor socioeconomic conditions, disease activity, use of corticosteroids, a number of surgeries ≥2 and anterior hospitalization history. CONCLUSION: In this study, IBD cause impaired HRQL affecting almost all areas of the SF 36 questionnaire. Incriminated factors may be related to the patient, disease and even treatment.

Gastrointestinal Biopsy in Henoch-Schönlein Purpura: A Great Diagnostic Contribution.

Henoch-Schönlein purpura is an IgA-mediated immune vasculitis which is characterized by purpuric lesions and osteoarticular, intestinal and sometimes renal manifestations. The histopathological substrate of this entity is leucocytoclastic vasculitis (LCV) with IgA deposits seen on immunohistochemistry. We here report the case of a 27-year-old woman with abdominal pain and cutaneous purpura. Upper and lower endoscopic exploration showed purpuric lesions in the rectum but not in the stomach. Skin biopsy revealed LCV. IgA deposits were seen only in gastric mucosa. The patient was treated with corticoids which led to improvement of both the cutaneous and digestive symptoms. This case suggests that gastrointestinal biopsies of both normal and abnormal mucosa should be taken in Henoch-Schönlein purpura, especially in patients with atypical forms. LEARNING POINTS: The diagnosis of Henoch-Schönlein purpura may be difficult, especially in patients with atypical forms.Identification of IgA deposits is important for the diagnosis; these deposits may be absent in skin biopsies but present in gastrointestinal mucosa despite the absence of lesions on endoscopy.Therefore, taking gastrointestinal biopsies of both involved and uninvolved mucosa is important.