Early prediction of post-ERCP pancreatitis by post-procedure amylase and lipase levels: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background and study aims Post-ERCP pancreatitis (PEP) is the most common complication attributed to the procedure, its incidence being approximately 9.7 %. Numerous studies have evaluated the predictive efficacy of post-procedure serum amylase and lipase levels but with varied procedure-to-test time intervals and cut-off values. The aim of this meta-analysis was to present pooled data from available studies to compare the predictive accuracies of serum amylase and lipase for PEP. Patients and methods A total of 18 studies were identified after a comprehensive search of various databases until June 2021 that reported the use of pancreatic enzymes for PEP. Results The sample size consisted of 11,790 ERCPs, of which PEP occurred in 764 (6.48 %). Subgroups for serum lipase and amylase were created based on the cut-off used for diagnosing PEP, and meta-analysis was done for each subgroup. Results showed that serum lipase more than three to four times the upper limit of normal (ULN) performed within 2 to 4 hours of ERCP had the highest pooled sensitivity (92 %) for PEP. Amylase level more than five to six times the ULN was the most specific serum marker with a pooled specificity of 93 %. Conclusions Our analysis indicates that a lipase level less than three times the ULN within 2 to 4 hours of ERCP can be used as a good predictor to rule out PEP when used as an adjunct to patient clinical presentation. Multicenter randomized controlled trials using lipase and amylase are warranted to further evaluate their PEP predictive accuracy, especially in high-risk patients.

Application of artificial intelligence in diagnosis of pancreatic malignancies by endoscopic ultrasound: a systemic review.

Background: Pancreatic cancer (PC) is a highly fatal malignancy with a global overall 5-year survival of under 10%. Screening of PC is not recommended outside of clinical trials. Endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) is a very sensitive test to identify PC but lacks specificity and is operator-dependent, especially in the presence of chronic pancreatitis (CP). Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a growing field with a wide range of applications to augment the currently available modalities. This study was undertaken to study the effectiveness of AI with EUS in the diagnosis of PC. Methods: Studies from MEDLINE and EMBASE databases reporting the AI performance applied to EUS imaging for recognizing PC. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS-2) tool was used to assess the quality of the included studies. Results: A total of 11 articles reported the role of EUS in the diagnosis of PC. The overall accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of AI in recognizing PC were 80-97.5%, 83-100%, and 50-99%, respectively, with corresponding positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of 75-99% and 57-100%, respectively. Types of AI studied were artificial neural networks (ANNs), convolutional neural networks (CNN), and support vector machine (SVM). Seven studies using other than basic ANN reported a sensitivity and specificity of 88-96% and 83-94% to differentiate PC from CP. Two studies using SVM reported a 94-96% sensitivity, 93%-99% specificity, and 94-98% accuracy to diagnose PC from CP. The reported sensitivity and specificity of detection of malignant from benign Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasms (IPMNs) was 96% and 92%, respectively. Conclusion: AI reported a high sensitivity with high specificity and accuracy to diagnose PC, differentiate PC from CP, and differentiate benign from malignant IPMN when used with EUS.

Outcomes of Non-Variceal Upper Gastrointestinal Bleed Stratified by Hospital Teaching Status: Insights From the National Inpatient Sample.

BACKGROUND: Non-variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding (NVUGIB) is a significant cause of mortality and morbidity in the USA. Currently, there are limited data on the inpatient outcomes of patients admitted with a diagnosis of NVUGIB stratified according to teaching hospital status. We analyzed data from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) intending to evaluate these outcomes. METHODS: We queried the NIS 2016 and 2017 databases for NVUGIB hospitalizations by teaching hospital status. The primary outcome was inpatient mortality while secondary outcomes were rate of endoscopy for hemostasis, rate of early endoscopy (endoscopy in 1 day or less), mean time to endoscopy, rate of complications including acute kidney injury (AKI), acute respiratory failure (ARF), need for blood transfusion, development of sepsis, need for endotracheal intubation and mechanical ventilation as well as healthcare utilization. RESULTS: There were over 71 million weighted discharges in the combined 2016 and 2017 NIS database. A total of 94,900 NVUGIB cases were identified with 63.4% admitted in teaching hospitals. The in-hospital mortality for patients admitted with an NVUGIB in teaching hospitals was 1.98% compared to 1.5% in non-teaching hospitals (adjusted odds ratio (aOR): 1.38, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.08 - 1.77, P = 0.010) when adjusted for biodemographic and hospital characteristics as well as comorbidities. Patients admitted with a diagnosis of NVUGIB in teaching hospitals had a 10% adjusted increased odds of getting endoscopy for hemostasis (27.0% vs. 24.5%, aOR: 1.10, 95% CI: 1.02 - 1.19, P = 0.016) compared to patients in non-teaching hospitals. There was, however, no difference in early endoscopy between the two groups. CONCLUSION: Patients admitted at teaching hospitals for an NVUGIB had worse outcomes during hospitalizations including mortality, median length of stay, and total hospital charges when compared to NVUGIB patients managed at non-teaching hospitals.

Pharmacological Treatment of Pain in Osteoarthritis: A Descriptive Review.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis that is characterized by loss of articular cartilage and new formation of bone. Pain and functional disability are common features that lead to disability and poor quality of life. This review discusses the current state of knowledge concerning the treatment of pain in OA, with a focus on pharmacological treatments. This includes the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, acetaminophen, and other disease-modifying agents. RECENT FINDINGS: An updated review of the role of anti-nerve growth factor monoclonal antibodies and other novel agents in the treatment of OA is also presented. In addition, a discussion of current research on biological agents such as small molecules targeting ion channels and G protein-coupled receptors is included. These new pharmacological interventions expand the frontier for treatment of patients with OA. The purpose of the review is to provide clinicians with information about the effectiveness of different pharmacological modalities in order to enable them to make the best choices for the treatment of their patients.