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South Med J 2020 Jul;113(7):345-349

From the Division of Trauma & Surgical Critical Care and the Department of Research Administration, Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Neptune, New Jersey.

Objective: The purpose of the study was to evaluate whether early colectomy in patients who have toxic megacolon due to colitis reduces mortality.

Methods: The study was performed using the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database from 2012 to 2016. All patients 18 to 89 years of age who underwent colectomy for toxic megacolon resulting from colitis were included in the study. Read More

Surg Today 2020 Jun 23. Epub 2020 Jun 23.

Department of Pediatric Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Reproductive and Developmental Medicine, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka, 812-8582, Japan.

Hirschsprung's disease (HD) is a congenital disease manifesting various degrees of functional bowel obstruction caused by the absence of enteric ganglion cells, which are usually absent in the colonic segment of the HD patient. Because the aganglionic segment of HD always includes the rectum, pathological diagnosis can be made using a rectal sample. HD should be diagnosed as early as possible because serious complications, such as acute enterocolitis or toxic megacolon, can develop without a definitive diagnosis and appropriate treatment. Read More

Clin Exp Gastroenterol 2020 19;13:203-210. Epub 2020 May 19.

Department of Internal Medicine, University of Nevada Reno School of Medicine, Reno, NV, USA.

Toxic megacolon (TM) is one of the fatal complications of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or any infectious etiology of the colon that is characterized by total or partial nonobstructive colonic dilatation and systemic toxicity. It is associated with high morbidity and mortality, and surgical management is necessary for the majority of the cases. An accurate history and physical examination, plain radiographs of the abdomen, sigmoidoscopy, and, most important of all, awareness of the condition facilitate diagnosis in most cases. Read More

ANZ J Surg 2020 Jun 11. Epub 2020 Jun 11.

Department of General Surgery, Bunbury Regional Hospital, Bunbury, Western Australia, Australia.

Toxins (Basel) 2020 Jun 8;12(6). Epub 2020 Jun 8.

Department of Medicine, The University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences, 3000 Arlington Avenue, Toledo, OH 43614, USA.

Harmful algal blooms (HAB) have become a major health concern worldwide, not just to humans that consume and recreate on contaminated waters, but also to the fauna that inhabit the environments surrounding affected areas. HABs contain heterotrophic bacteria, cyanobacterial lipopolysaccharide, and cyanobacterial toxins such as microcystins, that can cause severe toxicity in many aquatic species as well as bioaccumulation within various organs. Thus, the possibility of trophic transference of this toxin through the food chain has potentially important health implications for other organisms in the related food web. Read More

Expert Rev Anti Infect Ther 2020 Jun 16:1-9. Epub 2020 Jun 16.

School of Stomatology/Department of Pathogenic Biology and Immunology, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Immunity and Metabolism, Xuzhou Medical University , Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, China.

Introduction: Toxigenic () is the main cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea and can induce pseudomembranous colitis and infrequent toxic megacolon, which are potentially fatal. The standard antibiotic therapy for infection (CDI) is limited by antibiotics' broad spectrum and further disruptive effects on indigenous microbiota. Probiotics may offer a prospective and alternative strategy for the prevention and treatment of CDI. Read More

Front Pediatr 2020 20;8:254. Epub 2020 May 20.

Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.

infection (cdi) often occurs with long-term and irregular use of antibiotics. Patients with tumors receiving both antibiotics and chemotherapy are at a high risk of cdi. The symptoms of cdi vary but can include diarrhea, hypovolemia, electrolyte imbalance, hypoproteinemia, toxic megacolon, gastrointestinal tract perforation, disseminated intravascular coagulation, sepsis, and other lethal complications. Read More

Cell Rep Med 2020 Apr;1(1)

Cancer Biology Program, Stanford School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305 USA.

infection (CDI) is an enteric bacterial disease that is increasing in prevalence worldwide. capitalizes on gut inflammation and microbiome dysbiosis to establish infection, with symptoms ranging from watery diarrhea to toxic megacolon. We reported that the safe-in-human clinical drug ebselen (ClinicalTrials. Read More

Int J Surg Case Rep 2020 11;71:151-154. Epub 2020 May 11.

Department of Pathology, Changi General Hospital, 2 Simei Street 3, S529889, Singapore.

Introduction: Intestinal parasitic infections are a health burden to developing countries, but can also become more prevalent worldwide, even in developed countries, with the advent of globalization. While most of these infections are benign, some may be associated with acute infections with high morbidity and mortality rates.

Case Presentation: A 36 years old patient presented with toxic megacolon with poly-helminthic infections, likely a result of raw food ingestion. Read More

ANZ J Surg 2020 May 12. Epub 2020 May 12.

Department of Surgical Oncology, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Pediatr Neonatol 2020 Apr 4. Epub 2020 Apr 4.

Department of Pediatrics, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Taoyuan, Taiwan; Molecular Infectious Disease Research Center, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan; Graduate Institute of Clinical Medical Sciences, Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Taoyuan, Taiwan. Electronic address:

Background: The epidemiology of nontyphoidal Salmonella (NTS) resistant to ciprofloxacin or ceftriaxone and its impact on patients' clinical course are rarely reported.

Methods: Children with culture-proven salmonellosis treated in a medical center in northern Taiwan in 2017 were enrolled. To trace the source of Salmonella, Salmonella isolated from food samples were collected from markets. Read More

Pathogens 2020 Apr 16;9(4). Epub 2020 Apr 16.

Pediatric Clinic, Pietro Barilla Children's Hospital, Department of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, 43126 Parma, Italy.

, formerly known as causes infections (CDI) varying from self-limited diarrhoea to severe conditions, including toxic megacolon and bowel perforation. For this reason, a prompt diagnosis is fundamental to early treatment and the prevention of transmission. The aim of this article is to review diagnostic laboratory methods that are now available to detect and to discuss the most recent recommendations on CDI treatment in children. Read More

Schizophr Res 2020 Jun 1;220:179-186. Epub 2020 Apr 1.

Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Otago, Wellington, New Zealand.

Objective: Clozapine is the favoured antipsychotic for treatment-refractory schizophrenia but its safe use requires careful adverse-effect management. Clozapine-induced gastrointestinal hypomotility (CIGH or 'slow-gut') is one of the most common and serious of clozapine's adverse effects. CIGH can lead to paralytic ileus, bowel obstruction, gastrointestinal ischaemia, toxic megacolon, and death. Read More

Int J Mol Sci 2020 Mar 31;21(7). Epub 2020 Mar 31.

Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo 060-8543, Japan.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a ubiquitous herpesvirus (the human herpesvirus 5) and an opportunistic pathogen that primarily infects HIV-positive and other immuno-compromised patients. Retrospective studies in the field of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have suggested a relationship between a concomitant colonic HCMV infection and poor outcomes in patients with an ulcerative colitis (UC) due to the presence of HCMV in surgical specimens of patients with a toxic megacolon or a steroid-resistant UC. Therefore, gastroenterologists have focused on the contribution of HCMV infections in the exacerbation of UC. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2020 Mar 22;13(3). Epub 2020 Mar 22.

Department of General Surgery, Borders General Hospital, Melrose, UK.

A 58-year-old woman presented to the emergency department in a district general hospital with severe abdominal pain and diarrhoea, after collapsing at home. She was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) in septic shock, and with acute kidney injury. An initial CT scan was suggestive of colitis. Read More

Anaesthesiol Intensive Ther 2020 Mar 23. Epub 2020 Mar 23.

Oddział Anestezjologii i Intensywnej Terapii, Zespół Opieki Zdrowotnej w Oławie.

Emerg Microbes Infect 2020 17;9(1):631-638. Epub 2020 Mar 17.

Institute of Digestive Disease, Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR.

infection (CDI) is a common cause of nosocomial diarrhea and can sometimes lead to pseudo-membranous colitis and toxic megacolon. We previously reported that the PCR ribotype 002 was a common ribotype in Hong Kong that was associated with increased mortality. In this study, we assessed bacteriological characteristics and virulence of ribotype 002 compared to other common ribotypes, including ribotypes 012, 014 and 046. Read More

Infect Immun 2020 Jun 22;88(7). Epub 2020 Jun 22.

Division of Protective Immunity, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

is a Gram-positive, spore-forming, anaerobic bacterium that infects the human gastrointestinal tract, causing a wide range of disorders that vary in severity from mild diarrhea to toxic megacolon and/or death. Over the past decade, incidence, severity, and costs associated with infection (CDI) have increased dramatically in both the pediatric and adult populations. The factors driving this rapidly evolving epidemiology remain largely unknown but are likely due in part to previously unappreciated host, microbiota, and environmental factors. Read More

World J Clin Cases 2020 Feb;8(3):552-559

Department of Pathology, Yeungnam University College of Medicine, Daegu 42415, South Korea.

Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) enterocolitis presenting in the form of pancolitis or involving the small and large intestines in an immunocompetent patient is rarely encountered, and CMV enterocolitis presenting with a serious complication, such as toxic megacolon, in an immunocompetent adult has only been reported on a few occasions.

Case Summary: We describe the case of a 70-year-old male with no history of inflammatory bowel disease or immunodeficiency who presented with toxic megacolon and subsequently developed massive hemorrhage as a complication of CMV ileo-pancolitis. The patient was referred to our institute for abdominal pain and distension. Read More

Clin Colon Rectal Surg 2020 Mar 25;33(2):92-97. Epub 2020 Feb 25.

Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana.

Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is the process of transplanting stool from a healthy donor into the gut of a diseased individual for therapeutic purposes. It has a clearly defined role in the treatment of recurrent (reclassified as " ") infection (CDI), with cure rates over 90% and decreased rates of subsequent recurrence compared with anti-CDI antibiotics. There is emerging evidence that FMT is also effective in the treatment of severe and fulminant CDI, with associated decreases in mortality and colectomy rates compared with standard antibiotic therapy. Read More

Clin Colon Rectal Surg 2020 Mar 25;33(2):58-66. Epub 2020 Feb 25.

Department of Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts.

The Gram-positive, spore-forming bacterium, is the leading cause of healthcare-associated infections in the United States, although it also causes a significant number of community-acquired infections. infections, which range in severity from mild diarrhea to toxic megacolon, cost more to treat than matched infections, with an annual treatment cost of approximately $6 billion for almost half-a-million infections. These high-treatment costs are due to the high rates of disease recurrence (>20%) and necessity for special disinfection measures. Read More

Curr Opin Microbiol 2020 Feb 20;53:19-25. Epub 2020 Feb 20.

Division of Protective Immunity, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA. Electronic address:

Clostridioides difficile is the leading cause of hospital-acquired gastrointestinal infections and a major public health burden in the United States. C. difficile infection causes a spectrum of disease from mild diarrhea to severe complications such as pseudomembranous colitis, toxic megacolon and death. Read More

Curr Gastroenterol Rep 2020 Feb 10;22(3):11. Epub 2020 Feb 10.

Colon and Rectal Surgery Division, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Via Alessandro Manzoni, 56, Rozzano, 20089, Milan, Italy.

Purpose Of Review: In this study, we present the evidence-based management for patients hospitalized for ulcerative colitis (UC) with a special focus on the synergic approach of the two key actors of the inflammatory bowel disease multidisciplinary team (IBD-MDT): gastroenterologist and surgeon.

Recent Findings: Focused treatment by a specialized IBD-MDT and early involvement of the colorectal surgeon in the management of hospitalized UC patients is advocated. The colectomy rate has not changed over the years. Read More

Nihon Shokakibyo Gakkai Zasshi 2020 ;117(2):157-164

Department of Internal Medicine, Division of IBD, Japan Community Health Care Organization, Tokyo Yamate Medical Center.

Dilatation of the colon in severe and fulminating ulcerative colitis is a sign of toxic megacolon and emergency surgery is usually the favored treatment option. Here we describe our experience with three cases of ulcerative colitis with megacolon in which surgery was avoided by treating the patients with a continuous intravenous infusion of cyclosporine, with full cooperation of the surgeons. We recommend that continuous intravenous infusion of cyclosporine be considered as an effective option for the conservative management of severe, fulminating ulcerative colitis with megacolon. Read More

Am Fam Physician 2020 02;101(3):168-175

Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA, USA.

Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of Clostridioides difficile infection have recently been updated. Risk factors include recent exposure to health care facilities or antibiotics, especially clindamycin. C. Read More

J Formos Med Assoc 2020 Jan 20. Epub 2020 Jan 20.

Division of Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Inflammatory Bowel Disease Clinical and Study Integrated Center, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address:

Am Surg 2019 Dec;85(12):1311-1313

From the *Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and.

Dr. Orvar Swenson is best remembered for developing the , a technique he developed to treat Hirschsprung's disease. After graduating from Harvard Medical School and beginning his residency at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital, Dr. Read More

Emerg Microbes Infect 2020 24;9(1):42-52. Epub 2019 Dec 24.

Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Toho University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.

causes healthcare-related diarrhoea in high-income countries. Highly resistant spores persist in healthcare facilities, primarily infecting patients who have recently received antimicrobials. infection (CDI) has been studied in detail in North America and Europe; however, the epidemiology of CDI elsewhere, including the Asia-Pacific region, is largely unknown. Read More

Clin Exp Gastroenterol 2019 10;12:449-456. Epub 2019 Dec 10.

Department of Medicine, Bronx Care Health System, Affiliated with Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Bronx, NY, USA.

Purpose: Mouse model experiments have demonstrated an increased infection (CDI) severity with Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) use. We aim to evaluate the impact of NSAIDs in humans after a diagnosis of CDI on primary outcomes defined as I) all-cause mortality and II) toxic mega-colon attributable to CDI.

Patients And Methods: All hospitalized patients with a diagnosis of CDI were divided into two groups; those with NSAIDs administered up to 10 days after onset of CDI versus no NSAIDs use. Read More

Acta Microbiol Immunol Hung 2019 Dec 6:1-8. Epub 2019 Dec 6.

Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine,Jagiellonian University Collegium Medicum, Kraków,Poland.

Clostridioides (formerly Clostridium) difficile infections (CDIs) are becoming more common and more serious. C. difficile is the etiologic agent of antibiotic-associated diarrhea, pseudomembranous enterocolitis, and toxic megacolon while CDIs recur in 7. Read More

Anaesthesiol Intensive Ther 2019 ;51(4):273-282

Department of Intensive Care, University Hospital of Brussels (UZB), Jette, Belgium.

Background: Without timely diagnosis, acute primary abdominal compartment syndrome (ACS) is a potentially fatal syndrome and often goes unrecognized until severe symptoms appear. Early diagnosis may significantly improve the prognosis of these patients.

Case Presentation: We present the case of a 54-year-old man, successfully treated for acute myeloid leukemia with cytosine arabinoside, admitted to the intensive care unit with severe shock, refractory to standard therapy with antibiotics, fluid resuscitation, and vasopressors. Read More

Epidemiol Infect 2019 10 14;147:e289. Epub 2019 Oct 14.

Division of Nephrology, Department of Medicine, Samsung Changwon Hospital, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Changwon, Korea.

The risk of metronidazole treatment failure in Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) or end-stage renal disease in Korea has not been established. We evaluated 481 patients who had been admitted to two secondary hospitals with a diagnosis of, and treatment for, CDI during 2010-2016. CDI patients were divided into three groups according to CKD status: non-CKD (n = 363), CKD (n = 55) and those requiring dialysis (n = 63). Read More

J Crohns Colitis 2020 May;14(4):465-479

Department of Gastroenterology, Alfred Hospital and Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.

Background And Aims: Gastrointestinal ultrasound is useful in the assessment of patients with Crohn's disease, but its application in ulcerative colitis [UC] is less well established. Here we systematically review the role of gastrointestinal ultrasound in patients with UC.

Methods: Searches of the PUBMED and EMBASE databases were performed with the following search strategy: [ultrasound OR sonography] AND [intestinal OR bowel] AND [ulcerative colitis OR inflammatory bowel disease]. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2019 Aug 30;12(8). Epub 2019 Aug 30.

Department of Surgery, Eastern Health, Box Hill, Victoria, Australia.

A 63-year-old man with a history of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease underwent defunctioning loop ileostomy for obstructing metastatic rectal cancer prior to receiving long-course neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy. Four months post completion of neoadjuvant therapy, he underwent an uncomplicated elective ultra-low anterior resection with formation of colonic J pouch and first stage liver metastasectomy for bilobar liver disease. At 1 year, he proceeded to an elective closure of loop ileostomy. Read More

Eur J Case Rep Intern Med 2019 8;6(7):001175. Epub 2019 Jul 8.

Hospital Professor Doutor Fernando Fonseca, Amadora, Portugal.

Ogilvie's syndrome or acute colonic pseudo-obstruction is characterized by massive colon dilation in the absence of mechanical obstruction or toxic megacolon. The phenotype associated with secretory diarrhoea is rare and is related to increased potassium channel activity in the colon, inducing excessive potassium loss, with increased sensitivity to normal serum aldosterone levels. The recommended therapy is potassium-sparing agents. Read More

Infect Drug Resist 2019 10;12:1597-1615. Epub 2019 Jun 10.

Department of BioNano Technology, Gachon University, Seongnam-si 461-701, Republic of Korea.

() is rapidly becoming one of the most prevalent health care-associated bacterial infections in the developed world. The emergence of new, more virulent strains has led to greater morbidity and resistance to standard therapies. The bacterium is readily transmitted between people where it can asymptomatically colonize the gut environment, and clinical manifestations ranging from frequent watery diarrhea to toxic megacolon can arise depending on the age of the individual or their state of gut dysbiosis. Read More

Klin Mikrobiol Infekc Lek 2019 Mar;25(1):12-15

Department of Clinical Microbiology and Immunology, Regional Hospital Liberec, Faculty of Medicine in Hradec Králové, Charles University, Czech Republic, e-mail:

Objective: Clostridioides difficile (formerly Clostridium difficile) is one of the main pathogens causing nosocomial infections today. It colonizes the intestines of patients receiving antibiotic therapy, causing unpleasant or even life-threatening conditions (diarrhea, toxic megacolon). Rapid and correct detection of strain toxigenicity is essential for treatment and isolation of patients. Read More

Open Forum Infect Dis 2019 May 20;6(5):ofz186. Epub 2019 Apr 20.

Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Background: () infection (CDI) is a health care-associated infection that can lead to serious complications. Potential complications include intensive care unit (ICU) admission, development of toxic megacolon, need for colectomy, and death. However, identifying the patients most likely to develop complicated CDI is challenging. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2019 May 24;12(5). Epub 2019 May 24.

Beaumont Health System, Royal Oak, Michigan, USA.

A female aged 84 years with a history of -associated diarrhoea presented from an extended care facility with altered mental status and respiratory distress. She was haemodynamically unstable and initial laboratory results revealed hyperleucocytosis (110.3×10/L). Read More

Microbiol Spectr 2019 05;7(3)

Infection and Immunity Program, Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute and Department of Microbiology, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia, 3800.

is a Gram-positive, anaerobic, spore forming pathogen of both humans and animals and is the most common identifiable infectious agent of nosocomial antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Infection can occur following the ingestion and germination of spores, often concurrently with a disruption to the gastrointestinal microbiota, with the resulting disease presenting as a spectrum, ranging from mild and self-limiting diarrhea to severe diarrhea that may progress to life-threating syndromes that include toxic megacolon and pseudomembranous colitis. Disease is induced through the activity of the toxins TcdA and TcdB, both of which disrupt the Rho family of GTPases in host cells, causing cell rounding and death and leading to fluid loss and diarrhea. Read More

Microb Genom 2019 07 20;5(7). Epub 2019 May 20.

Pathogen and Microbiome Institute, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA.

Clostridioides difficile is a ubiquitous, diarrhoeagenic pathogen often associated with healthcare-acquired infections that can cause a range of symptoms from mild, self-limiting disease to toxic megacolon and death. Since the early 2000s, a large proportion of C. difficile cases have been attributed to the ribotype 027 (RT027) lineage, which is associated with sequence type 1 (ST1) in the C. Read More

J Obstet Gynaecol Res 2019 Jul 7;45(7):1215-1221. Epub 2019 May 7.

Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, "Sapienza" University of Rome, Umberto I Hospital, Rome, Italy.

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory disease rarely arising during gestation. Because the available information is based on case reports or small retrospective studies, diagnosis may be difficult and treatment is still controversial. A case of toxic megacolon developing in late pregnancy associated to a sudden fetal decompensation is described. Read More

Rev Gastroenterol Mex 2019 Apr - Jun;84(2):204-219. Epub 2019 Apr 12.

Hospital Ángeles y Hospital Lomas, San Luis Potosí, S.L.P., México. Electronic address:

In recent decades, Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) has become a worldwide health problem. Mexico is no exception, and therefore the Asociación Mexicana de Gastroenterología brought together a multidisciplinary group (gastroenterologists, endoscopists, internists, infectious disease specialists, and microbiologists) to carry out the "Consensus on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of Clostridium difficile infection", establishing useful recommendations (in relation to the adult population) for the medical community. Said recommendations are presented herein. Read More

SAGE Open Med Case Rep 2019 19;7:2050313X19838442. Epub 2019 Mar 19.

Clinic of Gastroenterology, Adana City Research and Education Hospital, University of Health Sciences, Adana, Turkey.

The infection-related disease varies from mild diarrhoea to pseudomembranouscolitis. Although infection is commonly considered to be a hospital-acquired infection, a significant number of cases are community acquired. Community-acquired infection can exhibit itself as ileus or toxic megacolon. Read More

Dis Mon 2019 Dec 2;65(12):100851. Epub 2019 Mar 2.

Division of Gastroenterology, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon; Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, University of Pittsburgh, M2, C Wing, 200 Lothrop Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic idiopathic inflammatory bowel disorder of the colon that causes continuous mucosal inflammation extending from the rectum to the more proximal colon, with variable extents. UC is characterized by a relapsing and remitting course. UC was first described by Samuel Wilks in 1859 and it is more common than Crohn's disease worldwide. Read More

J Infect Chemother 2019 May 21;25(5):379-384. Epub 2019 Feb 21.

Department of Clinical Infectious Diseases, Aichi Medical University Hospital, Nagakute, Aichi, Japan; Department of Infection Control and Prevention, Aichi Medical University Hospital, Nagakute, Aichi, Japan. Electronic address:

A 76-year-old Japanese woman was admitted due to uncontrolled cellulitis of the right lower leg. She had deep vein thrombosis on the right limb. Moreover, she had a long history of rheumatoid arthritis treated with corticosteroids. Read More

Clin J Gastroenterol 2019 Aug 14;12(4):325-329. Epub 2019 Feb 14.

Third Department of Internal Medicine, Kyorin University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.

We report a case of community-acquired fulminant colitis caused by Clostridium difficile in Japan. A 46-year-old woman was diagnosed with severe infectious enterocolitis and was admitted at another hospital. The stool culture was positive for toxigenic C. Read More

J Clin Microbiol 2019 05 26;57(5). Epub 2019 Apr 26.

Department of Microbiology and Infectious Disease, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada

The epidemiology of infection (CDI) has drastically changed since the emergence of the epidemic strain BI/NAP1/027, also known as ribotype 027 (R027). However, the relationship between the infecting strain and clinical outcomes is still debated. We hypothesized that certain subpopulations of R027 isolates could be associated with unfavorable outcomes. Read More

Acta Biomed 2018 12 17;89(9-S):153-157. Epub 2018 Dec 17.

Pediatric Emergency Unit, University Hospital of Parma, Maternal and Infant Department, Parma, Italy.

Background: Shiga-toxin Escherichia coli productor (STEC) provokes frequently an important intestinal damage that may be considered in differential diagnosis with the onset of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). The aim of this work is to review in the current literature about Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS) and IBD symptoms at the onset, comparing the clinical presentation and symptoms, as the timing of diagnosis and of the correct treatment of both these conditions is a fundamental prognostic factor. A focus is made about the association between typical or atypical HUS and IBD and a possible renal involvement in patient with IBD (IgA-nephropathy). Read More