Liver-Related Death in Lean NAFLD; Gravity Causing IBS? Appendicitis and UC Risk

Patients with lean non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) had a higher risk for liver-related mortality, a meta-analysis found. (Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology)

For patients with lateral abdominal hernias, robotic surgical repair was not only a safe alternative to open surgery but was also tied with a significantly shorter length of stay and fewer complications. (Hernia)

Sticking to a plant-based diet over a nearly 20-year follow-up slashed the risk for colorectal cancer in men, but the same couldn’t be said for women. (BMC Medicine)

What role does gravity play in irritable bowel syndrome? (Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, American Journal of Gastroenterology)

Johnson & Johnson hit Amgen with a lawsuit, alleging that Amgen’s plans to market a biosimilar of ustekinumab (Stelara) would infringe on two patents. (Reuters)

Within the first year of being diagnosed with liver cancer, Medicare patients faced $50,000 more in median payments compared with those with cirrhosis. (Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology)

Single-incision needle-knife (SINK) biopsies for patients with gastrointestinal subepithelial tumors scored a 98.1% technical success rate, an 87.9% diagnostic success rate, and an 88.3% immunohistochemical success rate, with a 7.5% adverse event rate driven mostly by bleeding, according to a meta-analysis. (Gastrointestinal Endoscopy)

A Swedish sibling comparison study confirmed the protective effect of acute appendicitis against ulcerative colitis. (BMJ Open Gastroenterology)