Helicobacter pylori is now considered a major pathogen of the upper gastrointestinal tract. It is seen as an important cause of peptic ulceration not associated with NSAID use. It is also increasingly linked to other diseases of the GI tract, although the relationship between the organism and conditions such as gastric cancer, non-ulcer dyspepsia and gastroesophageal reflux disease is not as cl...

∑ Few subspecialty fields in radiology have undergone so many changes in the last several decades as has gastrointestinal (GI) radiology. We have witnessed the appearance of previously unknown or very uncommon diseases and observed changes in the prevalence and treatment of known diseases. In the clinical setting, abdominal radiology had a seminal role in evaluating these conditions. Scientific...

A recent issue of the British Journal of Nutrition reflects a marked change in the importance we now attach to the role of dietary carbohydrates in both managing and retarding the development of non-communicable diseases, with four commentaries: Choosing your carbohydrates to prevent diabetes (Mathers, 2002); Low carbohydrate does not mean low glycaemic index! (Wolever, 2002); Diet, satiety and...

Multiple peptide hormones produced within the gastrointestinal system aid in the regulation of energy homeostasis and metabolism. Among these is the intestinotrophic peptide glucagon-like peptide-2 (GLP-2), which is released following food intake and plays a significant role in the adaptive regulation of bowel mass and mucosal integrity. The discovery of GLP-2's potent growth-promoting and cyto...

Every year in the United States approximately 200,000 people die from pulmonary infections, such as influenza and pneumonia, or from lung disease that is exacerbated by pulmonary infection. In addition, respiratory diseases such as, asthma, affect 300 million people worldwide. Therefore, understanding the mechanistic basis for host defense against infection and regulation of immune processes in...

Gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy has been popularly applied for the diagnosis of diseases of the alimentary canal including Crohn’s Disease, Celiac disease and other malabsorption disorders, benign and malignant tumors of the small intestine, vascular disorders and medication related small bowel injury. There are two classes of GI endoscopy; wired active endoscopy and wireless passive capsule en...

Gastric antral vascular ectasia (GAVE) is a rare clinical disease which can cause recurrent upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract bleeding. It is responsible for about 4% of non-variceal upper GI haemorrhages. As one of the vascular diseases that happened in stomach, GAVE was also named as watermelon stomach (WS) for its characteristic endoscopic performance. Compared with portal hypertensive gastr...

The field of endoscopy has revolutionized the diagnosis and treatment of gastrointestinal (GI) diseases in recent years. Besides the 'traditional' endoscopic procedures (esophagogastroduodenoscopy, colonoscopy, flexible sigmoidoscopy, and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography), advances in imaging technology (endoscopic ultrasonography, wireless capsule endoscopy, and double balloon en...

At a time when the judicious use of a broad range of immunosuppressive drugs has ensured excellent patient and organ survival rates after kidney transplantation, attention is focusing on strategies to minimize their side effects. Almost all immunosuppressive medications are associated with some form of gastrointestinal (GI) complication (1–6). The majority of these complications fall into one o...

Gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding due to colonic angiodysplasias can be associated with calcifying aortic stenosis (AS). GI angiodysplasias and AS are defined as chronic degenerative disorders, and the prevalence of both diseases increases with age. Moreover, degenerative AS is associated with increased destruction of high molecular weight multimers of von Willebrand factor which can promote bleed...