Author Archives: gutsandgrowth

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About gutsandgrowth

I am a pediatric gastroenterologist at GI Care for Kids (previously called CCDHC) in Atlanta, Georgia. The goal of my blog is to share some of my reading in my field more broadly. In addition, I wanted to provide my voice to a wide range of topics that often have inaccurate or incomplete information. Before starting this blog in 2011, I would tear out articles from journals and/or keep notes in a palm pilot. This blog helps provide an updated source of information that is easy to access and search, along with links to useful multimedia sources. I was born and raised in Chattanooga. After graduating from the University of Virginia, I attended Baylor College of Medicine. I completed residency and fellowship training at the University of Cincinnati at the Children’s Hospital Medical Center. I received funding from the National Institutes of Health for molecular biology research of the gastrointestinal tract. During my fellowship, I had the opportunity to work with some of the most amazing pediatric gastroenterologists and mentors. Some of these individuals included Mitchell Cohen, William Balistreri, James Heubi, Jorge Bezerra, Colin Rudolph, John Bucuvalas, and Michael Farrell. I am grateful for their teaching and their friendship. During my training with their help, I received a nationwide award for the best research by a GI fellow. I have authored numerous publications/presentations including original research, case reports, review articles, and textbook chapters on various pediatric gastrointestinal problems. In addition, I have been recognized by Atlanta Magazine as a "Top Doctor" in my field multiple times. Currently, I am the vice chair of the section of nutrition for the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. In addition, I am an adjunct Associate Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine. Other society memberships have included the North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition (NASPGHAN), American Academy of Pediatrics, the Food Allergy Network, the American Gastroenterology Association, the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, and the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. As part of a national pediatric GI organization called NASPGHAN (and its affiliated website GIKids), I have helped develop educational materials on a wide-range of gastrointestinal and liver diseases which are used across the country. Also, I have been an invited speaker for national campaigns to improve the evaluation and treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease, celiac disease, eosinophilic esophagitis, hepatitis C, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Some information on these topics has been posted at my work website, www.gicareforkids.com, which has links to multiple other useful resources. I am fortunate to work at GI Care For Kids. Our group has 17 terrific physicians with a wide range of subspecialization, including liver diseases, feeding disorders, eosinophilic diseases, inflammatory bowel disease, cystic fibrosis, DiGeorge/22q, celiac disease, and motility disorders. Many of our physicians are recognized nationally for their achievements. Our group of physicians have worked closely together for many years. None of the physicians in our group have ever left to join other groups. I have also worked with the same nurse (Bernadette) since I moved to Atlanta in 1997. For many families, more practical matters about our office include the following: – 14 office/satellite locations – physicians who speak Spanish – cutting edge research – on-site nutritionists – on-site psychology support for abdominal pain and feeding disorders – participation in ImproveCareNow to better the outcomes for children with inflammatory bowel disease – office endoscopy suite (lower costs and easier scheduling) – office infusion center (lower costs and easier for families) – easy access to nursing advice (each physician has at least one nurse) I am married and have two sons (both adults). I like to read, walk/hike, bike, swim, and play tennis with my free time. I do not have any financial relationships with pharmaceutical companies or other financial relationships to disclose. I have helped enroll patients in industry-sponsored research studies.

Take Two: 1. Mushroom Poisoning 2. Maternal Deaths with Childbirth

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The link to the NPR article at the bottom of this blog is highly recommended –though it is a fairly long report.  Sad story for Mother’s Day.

First, from AGA blog summary of recent article: Which Patients Are at Greatest Risk From Mushroom Poisoining

An excerpt:

Maurizio Bonacini et al collected data from 27 patients (15–82 years old) admitted to the emergency department within 24 hours of ingesting wild mushrooms. All presented with nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps or pain, and diarrhea…

Twenty-three patients survived without liver transplantation, 1 woman underwent liver transplantation on day 20 after mushroom ingestion, and 3 women died of hepatic failure.

Of the 23 patients with peak levels of total bilirubin of 2 mg/dL or more during hospitalization, 4 died or required liver transplantation.

A peak serum level of AST <4000 IU/L identified patients with good outcomes (survival without need for liver transplant) with 100% positive predictive value; use of this cutoff would have saved 10 patients from a transfer to our tertiary center.

Bonacini et al also found that a peak INR value of <2, or a nadir factor V cutoff ≥30%, would have avoided transfer for 7 and 6 patients, respectively.

Also from NPR: Focus on Infants Leaves U.S. Moms in danger

FDA Warning on Eluxadoline (Viberzi)

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Briefly noted: The FDA has issued a safety warning for patients with irritable bowel syndrome who have had their gallbladder removed.

FDA Warns of Increased Risk of Serious Pancreatitis with irritable bowel drug eluxadoline (Viberzi) in patients without a gallbladder

An excerpt:

Viberzi is a prescription medicine used to treat irritable bowel syndrome in adults when the main symptom is diarrhea (IBS-D)…From May 2015, when Viberzi was first approved, through February 2017, FDA received 120 reports of serious cases of pancreatitis or death.* Among the 68 patients who reported their gallbladder status, 56 of them did not have a gallbladder and received the currently recommended dosage of Viberzi. Seventy-six patients were hospitalized, of which two patients died.

My take: Now that this warning has been issued, there may be additional cases identified. While this medication is mainly used in adults, pediatric gastroenterologists need to be aware of this risk in counseling potential patients.

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Palace of Versailles -fountain turned off!

 

Science in a Hyperpartisan Age

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Two recent commentaries (L Rosenbaum. NEJM 2017; 376: 1607–09; DJ Hunter et al. NEJM 2017; 376: 1605–7) discuss the intersection of science and politics.

Some key points from the first commentary:

  • “When doubt is wrapped up in one’s cultural identity or powerful emotions, facts often not only fail to persuade, but may further entrench skepticism.”  This is referred to as “biased assimilation.”
  • People with “higher levels of science comprehension are actually also the most adept at dismissing evidence that challenges their beliefs.”  Liberals, “for instance, are far more likely than conservatives to dismiss science suggesting that genetically modified foods are safe.”
  • “It’s easy to forget that most scientific facts, and related policies, don’t induce tribalism. You don’t see partisan battles over treatment for myocardial infarction.”
  • Dan Kahan, an expert on the way emotion and identity affect our interpretation of scientific facts says that our president “is our science communication environment polluter in chief.”  Such polluters “cunningly incite cultural battles that ultimately heighten distrust of science.”
  • For vaccine skeptics, if criticized, will try to elicit a backlash against the “academic elite.”

The second commentary focuses on the issue of climate change.  Key points:

  • “Average temperatures have increased by 1.3 to 1.9 degrees F over the past century…and increases have accelerated in recent years…the three hottest years recorded in the U.S. were 2012, 2015, and 2016.”
  • Summer heat waves increase mortality, worsen mosquito-related diseases, jeopardize crop production, increase ozone which worsens lung function, and contribute to forest fires.  Increases in “extreme heat leads to more aggression and violence.”
  • Climate change increases severe storms like hurricanes and cause indirect effects like waterborne-disease outbreaks.
  • The authors advocate for the CDC’s Building Resilience against Climate Effects (BRACE) (https://cdc.gov/climateandhealth/)
  • “U.S. leadership is critical to global action. Jobs in the renewable energy sector…already outnumber those in power generation from coal, natural gas, and oil combined.”
  • “Climate change has become unnecessarily politicized.” Tools for discussing this topic: http://climateforhealth.org/lets-talk -1 hour webinar available and links to specific ways to make an impact.

My take:  While I concede that I am not an expert on this topic, it is clear that climate change is having effects on population health and there are ways to reduce the future impact. Please don’t call me an elitist.

 

 

Is Propofol Safe in Pediatric Patients with Food Allergy and Eosinophilic Esophagitis?

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According to a recent study (P Mehta et al. JPGN 2017; 64: 546-49), propofol was safe in pediatric patients with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) and food allergy.

This finding was based on a retrospective study of 1365 upper endoscopies (2013-2014).  Though, propofol was used less frequently, “there was no difference in complication rates relative to propofol use.”

Specifically, egg or soy allergy patients had 38 procedures; 114 children had EoE (without known egg or soy allergy) and 27 and EoE and egg or soy allergy.

This study is important because propofol is used frequently in patients with egg and soy allergies despite a contraindication warning on the package insert. Nevertheless, this study does not provide a definitive answer due to the very low rates of allergic reactions to propofol (~1:10,000 to 1:20,000).  In addition, the diagnosis of food allergy in this study relied on review of the medical record.

My take: This study is limited in scope but did not identify any significant safety concerns with propofol in patients who had EoE and/or egg/soy allergies.

Palace of Versailles

CMV in IBD: Tissue Matters

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A recent study (P Tandon et al. Inflamm Bowel Dis 2017; 23: 551-60) was a systemic review regarding the accuracy of blood-based testing for predicting colonic CMV reactivation in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.  The review identified 9 studies.  The overall sensitivity of blood-based testing (either pp65 antigenemia or blood PCR) for CMV was 50.8% and the specificity was 99.9%. Blood PCR was better at 60% sensitivity.

My take: Blood-based tests are not sensitive enough to exclude colonic CMV reactivation. The authors recommend the use of immunohistochemistry or tissue PCR for detecting CMV reactivation in inflammatory bowel disease.

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Palace Gate, Versailles

Two for the PPI Team

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Medicine safety is not nearly as straight-forward as most people would expect.  Virtually all medicines have the potential for adverse reactions.  In addition, there are often conflicting reports on how frequent adverse reactions occur; furthermore, negative studies demonstrating safety may be published less frequently due to publication bias.

This problem is compounded by the frequent misunderstanding of statistics.  Frequently, risks of medications are expressed as an odds ratio.  So, if an adverse reaction occurs twice as often with the medication than without the medication, the odds ratio would 2.0.  Yet, if the adverse reaction is rare (eg. one in a million), then the absolute increase in risk remains minuscule.

Proton pump inhibitors have received a lot of press, often about rare increases in adverse reactions. But, there are many potential benefits to these medications and numerous studies demonstrating fairly good safety profiles.  A few more studies (thanks to Ben Gold for these references) on their safety have recently been published:

  • 1. “Long-term Proton Pump Inhibitor Use is Not Associated with Changes in Bone Strength and Structure” LE Targownik et al. Am J Gastroenterol 2017; 112: 95: 101.
  • 2. “Proton Pump Inhibitors Do Not Increase Risk for Clostridium difficile Infection in the Intensive Care Unit.” DM Faleck et al. Am J Gastroenterol 2016; 111: 1641-8.

In the first study, the authors examined 52 PPI-users (>5 yrs) and 52 non-PPI users with mean age of 65 years.  They underwent quantitative CT , DXA, and markers of bone metabolism. “There were no differences detected..between the two groups.”  The conclude that PPIs were not associated with changes that increase a risk of fracture and “provide further evidence that the association between PPI use and fracture is not causal.”

In the second study, the authors analyzed data from 14 ICUs 2010-2013 and identified 18,134 patients (mean age 66-67 yrs) who met inclusion criteria.  271 (1.5%) developed Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) in the ICU.  The main risk factor for CDI was antibiotics with adjusted Hazard Ratio (aHR) of 2.79.  “There was no significant increase in risk for CDI associated with PPIs in those who did not receive antibiotics (aHR 1.56; 95% CI, 0.72-3.35).”  “PPIs were actually associated with a decreased risk for CDI in those who received antibiotics (aHR 0.64; 95% CI 0.48-0.83).”  The authors also noted that even those who received the highest doses of PPIs, “there was no risk for health-care facility-onset CDI.”

My take: PPIs can be life-saving medications and can alleviate a lot of suffering.  These studies pushback on some of the concerns about PPI risk.

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Correlation between Microbiome and Irritable Bowel Syndrome

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I vaguely remember jokes that I heard as a teenager about computers that could analyze stool or urine and then come to remarkable conclusions about the person’s health or extramarital problems.  Fast-forward a few decades and these jokes are not so far off.

A recent study (J Tap, M Derrien, et al. Gastroenterol 2017; 152: 111-23) describes an intestinal microbiome ‘signature’ associated with severity of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).  Thanks to Ben Gold for highlighting this article.  (He placed this one on my desk: “Jay -FYI -It is all about the poop!”)

In this study, the authors collected fecal and mucosal samples from adult patients who met Rome III criteria for IBS.  They started with an exploratory set of 149 subjects (110 with IBS, 39 controls).  Subsequently, they used a validation cohort of 46 subjects (29 with IBS, 17 controls).

Key findings:

  • “By using classic approaches, we found no differences in fecal microbiota abundance or composition between patients with IBS vs healthy patients.”  But, “a machine learning procedure, a computational statistical technique, allowed us to reduce the 16S ribosomal RNA data complexity into a microbial signature for severe IBS, consisting of 90 bacterial operational taxonomic units.”
  • This microbial signature showed IBS to be associated negatively with microbial richness, exhaled CH4, presence of methanogens, and enterotypes enriched with Clostridiales or Prevotella species.  Figure 6 provides a graphic summary of the study and the microbial signature.
  • The authors note their findings were not explained by differences in diet or medications.
  • Overall, the microbial signature has a low sensitivity and thus at this point does not have clinical applicability.

My take: There are a number of studies showing that our gut microbiome is associated with numerous conditions, including IBS, inflammatory bowel disease, and metabolic syndrome.  Having our poops analyzed by a computer to tell us what is wrong does not seem all that funny anymore.

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Image Only: Living with Irritable Bowel Syndrome

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Burden of Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C

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Codeine and Tramadol –Additional Warnings

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NY Times: FDA Strengthens Warnings for Painkillers in Children

An excerpt:

The Food and Drug Administration announced on Thursday that any child younger than 12 should not take the opioid codeine, and those 18 and younger should not take tramadol, another painkiller, after certain surgeries. In addition, nursing mothers should avoid both drugs, since they pose dangers to breast-feeding babies, the agency said.

“The problem with both codeine and tramadol is that some people are “ultrarapid metabolizers” whose livers metabolize the drugs way too quickly, causing dangerously high levels of opioids to build up, said Dr. Douglas Throckmorton, the deputy director for regulatory programs at the F.D.A.’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.

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