The increasing incidence and high body mass index-related burden of gallbladder and biliary diseases-A results from global burden of disease study 2019

Biliary stents for active materials and surface modification: Recent advances and future perspectives

Demand for biliary stents has expanded with the increasing incidence of biliary disease. The implantation of plastic or self-expandable metal stents can be an effective treatment for biliary strictures. However, these stents are nondegradable and prone to restenosis. Surgical removal or replacement of the nondegradable stents is necessary in cases of disease resolution or restenosis. To overcome these shortcomings, improvements were made to the materials and surfaces used for the stents. First, this paper reviews the advantages and limitations of nondegradable stents. Second, emphasis is placed on biodegradable polymer and biodegradable metal stents, along with functional coatings. This also encompasses tissue engineering & 3D-printed stents were highlighted. Finally, the future perspectives of biliary stents, including pro-epithelialization coatings, multifunctional coated stents, biodegradable shape memory stents, and 4D bioprinting, were discussed.

Study on the burden of digestive diseases among Chinese residents in the 21st century

Background

The global burden of digestive diseases has increased in recent years. The study aims to comprehend the trend of incidence and death rates related to digestive diseases in China from 2000 to 2020.

Methods

The study collected data on digestive diseases and their causes, such as incidence rates, death rates, Years of Life Lost, Years Lived with Disability, Disability-Adjusted Life Years and estimated annual percentage change from the 2019 Global Burden of Disease website and the Chinese Health and Wellness Statistical Yearbook spanning. And we employed the age-period-cohort model to analyze the influence of age, period, and birth cohort on the trend of death rates associated with digestive diseases.

Results

In contrast to the global burden of digestive disease, China experienced increases in the age-standardized incidence for inflammatory bowel disease, gallbladder and biliary diseases, as well as appendicitis from 2000 to 2019. The corresponding estimated annual percentage change for these diseases were 2.06, 1.74, and 0.99. Females showed a significantly higher incidence of digestive diseases, while males experienced a higher death rate. Moreover, individuals in the age groups under 5 years and over 60 years exhibited higher death rates than those in other age groups.

Conclusion

The findings underscore the ongoing importance of digestive diseases as a substantial public health issue in China. Reducing the disease burden of IBD in China necessitates healthcare systems to enhance their infrastructure and personnel readiness, ensuring an equitable, affordable, and accessible distribution of care for IBD patients. To reduce the occurrence and mortality rates of digestive diseases in China, the government should promote the adoption of early screening policies for individuals under the 5 year and those above the 60 year. These policies should be accompanied by customized preventive measures.

Laparoscopic Management of Gall Bladder Diseases in Nigeria: A Systematic Review

Background

Globally, the incidence and mortality from gallbladder diseases is on the rise. The gold standard for the management of symptomatic gallbladder disease is laparoscopic cholecystectomy. The practice of laparoscopic cholecystectomy is at a nascent stage in Low and middle-income countries like Nigeria despite its obvious advantages over traditional open cholecystectomy. This systematic review aims to assess the extent to which laparoscopic cholecystectomy is performed for the management of gallbladder diseases in Nigeria.

Methodology

The review was guided by the PRISMA model. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Scopus, and Global health databases. All searches were conducted in August 2023. All study designs reporting laparoscopic cholecystectomy in Nigeria, in the past 10 years were included. Three authors conducted the data extraction using data extraction tables and two authors independently assessed the data for accuracy and completeness. The Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tool was used to assess the data quality. Twenty-two articles with 1569 patients were included in this review.

Results

Females accounted for 69.5% of the patients and 30.5% were males. Twelve (54.5%) of the studies were from the Southwest of the country, 3 (13.6%) each from the South East and North Central regions, 2 (9.1%) South-South, and 1 (4.5%) each from the North East and North West. Study designs were mostly cross-sectional with sample sizes from 1 to 400. The highest and lowest number of laparoscopic cholecystectomies reported were 300 and 1 respectively. The majority (95.2%) of laparoscopic cholecystectomies were on account of calculous cholecystitis and the methods reported were the 4-port and 3-port techniques. The follow-up period ranged from 3 weeks to 2 years with 54 (3.4%) complications reported.

Conclusions

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy in Nigeria is relatively safe with minimal complications. Its demand and uptake are on the rise, though slowly owing to its relatively high cost.

Personality differences in patients with and without gallstones

OBJECTIVE

Presence of gallstones is associated with a range of risk factors that have previously shown associations with personality traits. Our aim was to assess the differences in personality traits between the patients with and without gallstones.

METHODS

This study used a case-control design with 308 participants from the general population, 68.2% female, mean age 49.2 (SD 9.24) years, of whom 154 (50%) participants had asymptomatic gallstones. Personality was assessed with the Temperament and Character Inventory - Revised - 140 (TCI-R-140) and depression with the Center for Epidemiological Study of Depression Scale (CESD). Cut-off ≥16 on the CES-D was used as an exclusion criterion. Subjects were also checked for metabolic risk factors and sociodemographic characteristics.

RESULTS

The group with gallstones had significantly more pronounced metabolic risk factors and higher prevalence of smoking and alcohol usage in comparison with the group without gallstones. This group also exhibited higher temperament dimension Harm avoidance (HA) and lower character dimension Self-directedness (SD). Metabolic variables differed based on character dimension Cooperativeness (CO), smoking based on temperament dimensions Novelty seeking (NS) and HA, and alcohol usage on dimension NS within the gallstones group. In the logistic regression, controlled for smoking, alcohol usage and metabolic variables, temperament dimension HA was shown to be a significant predictor of the presence of gallstones.

CONCLUSION

Our findings indicate that personality may be associated with the presence of gallstones. Future longitudinal studies addressing the complex interplay of personality traits, psychological mechanisms and the associated behavioral, metabolic and neurobiological factors, are needed.