Granulomatous lung masses in an elderly patient with inactive Crohn's disease.

This is a case report of a 77-year-old female with Crohn's disease manifested by recurrent bowel obstructions, who required surgical resections on two occasions but no further medical treatment. She presented 2 years later with pulmonary infiltrates, hilar adenopathy, and multiple lung masses. Biopsies of the masses demonstrated noncaseating granulomatous inflammation and fibrosis similar to the pathology from her bowel resection. Six months later, these pulmonary lesions partially resolved without therapy. This case illustrates significant pulmonary manifestations of Crohn's disease in the absence of active gastrointestinal disease.

The prevalence of celiac disease autoantibodies in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE: [corrected] Systemic lupus erythematosus has been associated with false positive autoantibodies for primary biliary cirrhosis, chronic active hepatitis, Sjogren's syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, thyroid disorders, syphilis, and scleroderma. An increased prevalence of autoantibodies are found in celiac disease and systemic lupus erythematosus, which share the human lymphocyte HLA-B8 and HLA-DR3 histocompatibility antigens. This study examines the prevalence of celiac disease autoantibodies in systemic lupus erythematosus patients. METHODS: Patients observed in the Department of Rheumatology at our institutions in San Antonio, Texas with known systemic lupus erythematosus were offered participation in the study. One hundred three of the 130 patients contacted agreed to participate. Patients were excluded if they were pregnant or medically unable to undergo endoscopy. All volunteers were tested for the serological presence of IgA and IgM antigliadin and IgA antiendomysial antibodies. Those with positive serology underwent esophagogastroduodenoscopy with duodenal mucosal biopsy. RESULTS: Twenty-four of 103 (23.3%) systemic lupus erythematosus patients tested positive for either antigliadin antibody, whereas none of the 103 patients tested positive for antiendomysial antibody. None of the 24 antigliadin positive patients were found to have endoscopic or histological evidence of celiac disease, making the false positive rate of antigliadin antibody 23%. CONCLUSION: The presence of false positive antigliadin antibodies in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus is common. Despite shared human lymphocyte antigen loci there does not seem to be an association between celiac disease and systemic lupus erythematosus.

India ink tattooing in the esophagus.

BACKGROUND: Precise endoscopic measurement of esophageal landmarks is difficult and inaccurate because of the ability of the esophagus to lengthen and foreshorten. METHODS: Nineteen patients enrolled to date in a study of Barrett's esophagus had an India ink tattoo placed at the most proximal level of the squamocolumnar junction and were examined endoscopically at 3, 9, 15, 24, and 36 months. RESULTS: Eighteen of nineteen patients (94.7%) were judged to have a good to excellent tattoo persistence at 3 months. One of the 19 patients (5.3%) had poor tattoo persistence and was retattooed at the 3-month interval. Eventually, 15 of the 15 patients (100%) who remained in the study had a good or excellent tattoo persistence at 36 months. There were no complications related to India ink tattooing including chest pain, bleeding, or perforation. At follow-up endoscopy, no ulcers, inflammation, break in the mucosa, or pain were noted. CONCLUSION: India ink tattooing in the esophagus is safe and persistent and may be used as an effective method for longitudinal follow-up of lesions in the esophagus.

Effects of transdermal nicotine on lower esophageal sphincter and esophageal motility.

Cigarette smoking has been shown to decrease lower esophageal sphincter pressure (LESP) by 19-42%. This decrease in LESP may be due to nicotine in the cigarette smoke or substances other than nicotine. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a nicotine patch on esophageal motility since nicotine patches are devoid of all toxins present in the cigarette smoke except the nicotine. Ten healthy nonsmoking volunteers underwent baseline esophageal manometry. Esophageal manometry was repeated after placing a nicotine transdermal patch (Nicotrol) designed to deliver 15 mg of nicotine per day. The parameters that were compared included LESP by rapid pull-through (LESP-RPT) and station pull-through (LESP-SPT), LES relaxation, and velocity, amplitude, and duration of esophageal contractions. Plasma nicotine and cotinine levels were measured prior to baseline manometry and after 12 hr of placing the nicotine patch, the LESP-RPT decreased by 31% from 17.4 +/- 6.1 to 12.1 +/- 3.3 (P = 0.013) and the LESP-SPT by 27% from 13.4 +/- 5.4 to 9.8 +/- 4.8 (P = 0.029) after the nicotine patch. LES relaxation was present in 100% before and after nicotine patch. There were no significant differences in velocity, duration, and amplitude of esophageal contractions after the nicotine patch. Plasma nicotine and cotinine was absent in all subjects at baseline but was significantly elevated after 12 hr of nicotine patch. Transdermal delivery of nicotine results in a significant reduction in LESP in healthy subjects without effecting LES relaxation or esophageal body motility.

Comparison of Foley catheter as a replacement gastrostomy tube with commercial replacement gastrostomy tube: a prospective randomized trial.

Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) provides a non-surgical alternative to long-term enteral feeding. The gastrostomy tube, however, may deteriorate, malfunction, or be accidentally expelled, requiring replacement. A commercial gastrostomy tube is commonly used for replacement. However, a commercial replacement gastrostomy tube is many times more expensive than a Foley catheter, and the two have never been compared. We compared the efficacy and safety of an all-silicone Foley catheter used as a replacement feeding gastrostomy tube with the effectiveness of a commercial replacement gastrostomy tube in 46 patients undergoing long-term enteral feedings per gastrostomy. Twenty-four patients were randomized to the Foley group and 22 patients to the commercial replacement gastrostomy tube group. The Foley catheter functioned well without need for replacement in 16 (66%) patients for 27.4 +/- 14.8 (mean +/- SD) weeks; the commercial replacement gastrostomy tube functioned in 13 (59%) patients for 24.5 +/- 13.6 weeks (p > 0.05, NS). The Foley catheter needed to be replaced because of malfunction in 8 (34%) patients and the commercial replacement gastrostomy tube in 9 (41%) patients after 21.6 +/- 11.5 weeks and 19.3 +/- 9.3 weeks, respectively (p > 0.05, NS). Neither the Foley catheter nor the commercial replacement gastrostomy tube migrated; this was the most striking finding, in contrast to case reports in the literature. Our data suggest that the Foley catheter can be safely used as a replacement gastrostomy tube; it is considerably cheaper than the commercial replacement gastrostomy tube, and its efficacy and complication rates are similar to those of the commercial replacement gastrostomy tube.

Esophageal dilation with polyvinyl bougies, using a marked guidewire without the aid of fluoroscopy: an update.

One hundred thirty-eight patients with esophageal stricture underwent polyvinyl bougie dilations whereby American Endoscopy dilators were passed over a marked guidewire that had been placed endoscopically. Fluoroscopy was not utilized during the dilations. The dilations were performed only after the guidewire was properly placed, with 60-cm markings at the incisors, which ensured that the tip of the guidewire was in the antrum. One hundred fourteen patients had benign strictures and 24 had malignant strictures. There were 197 sessions of dilations for a total of 748 individual dilations. In 97 of 138 patients, the guidewire was placed in the antrum under direct vision. The remaining 41 patients had significant esophageal stenosis which prevented passage of the endoscope into the stomach; therefore, the guidewire was placed by advancing it blindly through the stenosis. There were no procedure-related complications. During this period, eight patients were dilated without complications, using fluoroscopic placement of guidewire because endoscopic placement of the guidewire was not considered safe. We conclude that esophageal strictures can be safely dilated in most patients by means of the American Endoscopy dilator system and the marked guidewire without the aid of fluoroscopy.

Venous complications of midazolam versus diazepam.

Although some studies have suggested fewer venous complications are associated with midazolam than with diazepam for endoscopic procedures, this variable has not been well documented. We prospectively evaluated the incidence of venous complications after intravenous injection of diazepam or midazolam in 122 consecutive patients undergoing colonoscopy and esophagogastroduodenoscopy. Overall, venous complications were more frequent with diazepam (22 of 62 patients) than with midazolam (4 of 60 patients) (p < 0.001). A palpable venous cord was present in 23% (14 of 62) of patients in the diazepam group, compared with 2% (1 of 60 patients) in the midazolam group (p < 0.002). Pain at the injection site occurred in 35% (22 of 62) of patients in the diazepam group compared with 7% (4 of 60 patients) in the midazolam group (p < 0.001). Swelling and warmth at the injection site were not significantly different between the two groups. Smoking, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use, intravenous catheter site, dwell time of the needle, alcohol use, and pain during the injection had no effect on the incidence of venous complications.

Gastric acid secretion in HIV-1 infection.

It has been suggested that AIDS patients may have reduced gastric acid output. This is of concern because gastric acid may be required for absorption of oral antifungal agents that are important in AIDS management. The cause as well as the progression of reduced gastric acid output in AIDS patients is unclear. This study investigated gastric acid output in relation to the stage of non-AIDS HIV-1-infected patients. No statistical difference was found between nine control and 26 male HIV-infected subjects in basal acid output, maximal acid output, peak acid output, or fasting serum gastrin, regardless of stage. Likewise, no relationship between stage of HIV infection and gastric acid output was determined. We conclude that there is no impairment in basal and maximally stimulated gastric acid secretion in non-AIDS HIV-1-infected males. In addition, the clinical stage of non-AIDS HIV-1 infection has no effect on gastric acid secretion.

Prospective evaluation of Foley catheter as a replacement gastrostomy tube.

Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy provides a nonsurgical alternative to enteral feeding. However, the percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube may deteriorate, malfunction, or be accidentally expelled from the stomach, requiring replacement. This prospective study was performed to evaluate the use of an all silicone Foley catheter (Foley) as a replacement feeding gastrostomy in 28 patients requiring replacement gastrostomy. A plastic ring and a retention disc were always placed over the Foley prior to replacement. Foley functioned well without replacement in 19 (68%) patients for a mean of 167 days. It needed to be replaced in nine (32%) patients due to malfunction after a mean of 138 days. Lack of migration of Foley was the most striking finding of our study, in contrast to case reports in the literature. These data suggest that Foley can be safely used as replacement gastrostomy tube. A randomized controlled trial comparing the Foley catheter as a replacement tube with other commercially available devices is needed.

Propranolol medication among coronary patients: relationship to type A behavior and cardiovascular response.

The present correlational study compared behavioral and psychophysiological characteristics of coronary patients who were either medicated or not medicated with the beta-adrenergic blocking drug propranolol. Eighty-eight patients were given a structured Type A interview (SI) and a history quiz while heart rate and blood pressure were monitored. Data were analyzed controlling for age, sex, extent of coronary artery disease, and history of angina. Results indicated that patients taking propranolol (n = 65) were significantly lower in intensity of Type A behavior than patients not taking propranolol (n = 23). No effects were obtained for patients medicated or not medicated with diuretics, nitrates, or other CNS active drugs. Propranolol patients also showed lesser heart rate and rate-pressure product responses to the interview, but did not differ in blood pressure responses. Components of Type A which were lower in propranolol patients included speech stylistics (loud/explosive, rapid/accelerated, potential for hostility). Content of responses to the SI and scores on the Jenkins Activity Survey did not differ between the groups. An explanation for these results is offered in terms of the effects of propranolol on peripheral sympathetic responses, and evidence for a physiological substrate for Type A behavior. A conceptualization of the Type A pattern in terms of cognitive and physiological components is advanced, and implications for clinical intervention are discussed.