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A case of a blue rubber bleb nevus syndrome in a 19-year-old female patient with multiple cutaneous and gastrointestinal hemangiomata is described. Recurrent GI bleeding resulted in severe chronic anemia, which was successfully treated by endoscopic laser photocoagulation and surgical resection. Both forms of therapy had to be repeated 4 years later, the patient having been well in the meantime. This combined endoscopic and surgical approach might also improve the survival of patients with severe GI hemorrhage due to blue rubber bleb nevus syndrome.

Escherichia coli was found to be the pathogen most frequently detected in blood and bile following endoscopic interventions in the biliary tract. Enterococci, Klebsiella and Streptococcus viridans were found in bile cultures with an incidence exceeding 10%. In view of the in-vitro test results, possible side effects, and contraindications, amoxicillin plus beta-lactamase inhibitors or quinolones are considered to be suitable antibiotics for the prophylaxis of biliary infections.

Biomagnetic measurements are based on the noninvasive recording of magnetic signals produced by biological sources such as nervous system and muscle. The aim of this study was to obtain multichannel magnetic field recordings from the human gastrointestinal tract and to localize the sources of these signals three-dimensionally. The magnetic field was recorded in eight human healthy subjects using a sensor array with 37 superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs); an electrogastrogram was recorded simultaneously. Biomagnetic source localization was carried out with an iterative nonlinear optimization algorithm using the model of an equivalent current dipole (ECD) and correlated to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in four volunteers. Magnetogastrograms and electrogastrograms demonstrated a similar frequency distribution with a peak at 3/min. In all subjects the centers of the calculated dipoles plotted vs time showed a characteristic migration across the stomach area. One volunteer demonstrated tachygastric episodes, during which his magnetic field amplitudes increased fivefold and his dipole migration disappeared. In absence of an attack his recordings changed to normal. This demonstrates multichannel magnetic recordings can be used to localize the sources of the biomagnetic field, which could be useful for the understanding of motility disturbances.

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