Gastroenterology

These days doctors are doing much more than just treating patients as they work through performance improvement measures as well as changes to their billing programs. The American Gastroenterological Association is working on ways to streamline the process to help doctors do their jobs more efficiently.

With so many changes in the health care industry, the days of doctors running solo practices in their hometowns seem to be ending as more physicians opt for employment with large health care systems.

For patients with chronic gastroenterological issues, the addition of psychological counseling can help with symptom management.

With prescription costs rising along with other fees in health care, the role of specialty pharmacy in gastroenterology (along with other options) has gained more attention in recent years.

The demand for gastroenterologists has grown in recent years while the number of doctors entering the field has remained steady. This has put even more of a burden on doctors as they work to provide the best care possible for their patients.

In part 2 of our interview, the effect Value-Based Payment has on patients is discussed.

When working with the value-based payment system, the size of the practice is just one factor doctors must consider when meeting the new requirements.

According to a new study published in Gastroenterology, research results showed that transoral fundoplication, an incision-less procedure allowing anti-reflux valve alteration, is an effective treatment for patients afflicted with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).

Laparoscopic colorectal surgery (LCS) using multiple ports has become commonplace in colorectal surgery, offering a safe alternative to open surgery with similar surgical results. In other types of surgery, single-incision laparoscopic surgery (SILS) and natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) are growing in popularity.

Researchers discovered defects in the Sox10 protein, a factor regulating gene expression, which evidently plays a role in developing post-operative gastrointestinal (GI) function in patients afflicted with Hirschsprung's disease.

When NYU Langone Medical Center gastroenterologist Lee Ann Chen, MD needs frozen stool pills, she puts in an order with OpenBiome, a two-year-old Massachusetts non-profit whose sole mission is to provide them.

If all goes as planned, Merck will soon take a major step forward in the hot pursuit among pharmaceutical companies to produce a newer, better, faster-working drug to treat the millions of people who have chronic hepatitis C infection.

A predictive calculator known as the nomogram has been shown to accurately determine the risk of disease recurrence in liver cancer patients following transplantation.

A recent clinical trial, published in The Lancet, involving a 6-week course of a combination of 3 direct-acting oral drugs was found to cure 38 of 40 individuals with hepatitis C virus infection (HCV).

In Part 2 Lea Ann Chen, MD, discusses some potential issues associated with Fecal Matter Transplantation.

Surgical management of colon and rectum diseases changes quite quickly. Noting that many changes have been suggested in just the last year, 2 surgeons from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, assembled a review of the most significant. This paper appears in the January 2015 issue of Current Opinions in Gastroenterology.

In part one of our interview with Lea Ann Chen, MD, from NYU Langone Medical Center she discusses the practical aspects of Fecal Microbiota Transplantation.

Following 2 recent studies published in Gastroenterology, researchers reported that a 24-week course of sofosbuvir and ribavirin could eliminate hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in two-thirds of patients who undergo liver transplantation.

The spread of hepatitis C infection through the health care system continues to be a public health concern and is the subject of a review study that appeared in the December 14 issue of World Journal of Gastroenterology.

The battle over prescription exclusivity of new hepatitis C drugs continued recently when CVS Caremark revealed a new agreement with drug maker Gilead Sciences to list only Harvoni and Sovaldi on its formularies.

New research suggests bacteria used for beer and bread digestion could potentially be beneficial for combating yeast infections and autoimmune diseases like Crohn's disease.

According to a recently published analysis in the January issue of Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) is connected with increased risk of upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB).

A team of researchers at Duke University recently announced the discovery of a novel gut-to-nervous-system connection that is likely functions via a more direct route than hormone release.

A group of scientists have recently discovered the method to cholera bacterium's madness: horizontal gene transfer‑stabbing and killing other bacteria to absorb their DNA. The disease, which is associated with acute watery diarrhea, is often caused by Vibrio cholera (V. cholerae) infection within the small intestine.

In this month's issue of Internal Medicine World Report (IMWR), we present summaries of highly relevant studies in the areas of cardiology, pulmonology, gastroenterology, infectious disease, psychiatry, and neurology. Selected by our physician editor for their relevance to the practice of internal medicine, each study addresses a key clinical issue that can have a significant impact on patient care.

From inflammatory bowel disease to Crohn's disease and everywhere in the gastrointestinal system in between 2014 was a big year for medical breakthroughs and potential future treatments. Here is a look at the top 10 stories.

Express Scripts has dropped Solvaldi, Harvoni, and Olysio in favor of an exclusive deal with the drug maker AbbVie Inc. to prescribe its newly approved hepatitis C drug called Viekira Pak, according to a statement from the prescription drug-benefits management company.

This cohort study looked at the influence of maintaining a Mediterranean diet on telomere length, which is commonly used as a surrogate marker for longevity.

Eating a low carbohydrate diet compared to a low fat diet leads to greater loss of weight as well as a significant reduction in Framingham Risk Score.

The use of fecal immunochemical testing was found to be an effective method for colorectal cancer screening; this study found it led to an 8.4% positivity rate. On subsequent colonoscopy, 40% of those with positive FIT tests had advanced adenomas or colorectal cancer.