Barrett's metaplasia in Indian obese male patients with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease.

Although 10% to 15% of gastro-oesophageal reflex disease (GERD) patients have Barrett's oesophagus, neither the frequency nor the severity of symptoms correlates with the presence of Barrett's epithelium. Age, male sex, white race, and obesity have been implicated in some studies. The studies in Indian population reflect low prevalence rates; however, there is no study of obesity as independent risk factor for Barrett's disease in Indian population. The present study showed Barrett's oesophagus in 9.5% patients who were obese as compared to non-obese patients having Barrett's 6.7% suggesting obesity might not predispose to Barrett's oesophagus, in patients of GERD taken criterion for obesity as BMI more than 30.

Familial progressive sensorimotor neuropathy with agenesis of the corpus callosum (Andermann syndrome): a clinical, neuroradiological and histopathological study.

Three siblings from consanguineous parents, originating from Tanzania, presented with symptoms of complete or partial agenesis of the corpus callosum. Two males had in addition a sensorimotor neuropathy, moderate mental retardation and skeletal dysmorphism (Andermann syndrome). A study of sural nerve biopsies revealed thickening of the perineurium and reduction in the number of large myelinated fibres with axonal degeneration. Muscle biopsies showed neurogenic atrophy. The Andermann syndrome is autosomal recessive and almost exclusively confined to the region of Charlevoix and Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean (Quebec, Canada). Moreover in families with the Andermann syndrome, no siblings with only agenesis of the corpus callosum have been described.