Alimentary pharmacology & therapeutics
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The term abdominal compartment syndrome refers to hypoperfusion and ischaemia of intra-abdominal viscera and structures caused by raised intra-abdominal pressure. It occurs most commonly following major trauma and complex surgical procedures, but can also occur in their absence. Definitive treatment is decompression at laparotomy. Prevention and recognition of abdominal compartment syndrome are crucial to avoid additional morbidity and mortality. Postinjury abdominal compartment syndrome continues to complicate current resuscitation methods and new strategies for resuscitating critically ill patients need to be explored in addition to more accurate monitoring of intra-abdominal pressure. ⋯ The abdominal compartment syndrome is an important complication of trauma, surgery and resuscitation. Key to its management are its prompt recognition and abdominal decompression.
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Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. · Aug 2008
Randomized Controlled TrialClinical trial: effectiveness of chewing-gum in accelerating capsule endoscopy transit time--a prospective randomized, controlled pilot study.
Capsule endoscopy (CE) fails to reach the caecum in approximately 20% of patients. Data suggest that chewing-gum, simulating sham feeding, provokes the cephalic phase of gastrointestinal (GI) motor response and may increase GI motility. ⋯ Chewing-gum significantly reduces GTT and SBTT during CE. Its use may improve the likelihood of the capsule reaching the caecum without affecting CE image quality.
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Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. · Aug 2008
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyClinical trial: alvimopan for the management of post-operative ileus after abdominal surgery: results of an international randomized, double-blind, multicentre, placebo-controlled clinical study.
Post-operative ileus (POI) affects most patients undergoing abdominal surgery. ⋯ Although the significant clinical effect of alvimopan on reducing POI observed in previous trials was not reproduced, this trial suggests potential benefit in bowel resection patients who received PCA.
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Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. · Aug 2008
Cost-effectiveness analysis on screening for colorectal neoplasm and management of colorectal cancer in Asia.
Faecal occult blood testing (FOBT), flexible sigmoidoscopy (FS) and colonoscopy are recommended for subjects above 50 years of age for screening for colorectal cancer (CRC). ⋯ FOBT is cost-effective compared to FS or colonoscopy for CRC screening in average-risk individuals aged from 50 to 80 years.
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Aliment. Pharmacol. Ther. · Aug 2008
Comparative StudyClinical trial: percutaneous acetic acid injection vs. percutaneous ethanol injection for small hepatocellular carcinoma--a long-term follow-up study.
The long-term outcome of percutaneous acetic acid injection (PAI) and percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) for treating small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unclear. ⋯ Percutaneous acetic acid injection required fewer treatment sessions than PEI and provided better survival after long-term follow-up.