The findings suggest that most patients with IEE have esophageal strictures, often with distinctive ringlike indentations that produce a ringed esophagus.

Background and Aim Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has been proposed as a treatment option for patients with recurrent Clostridium difficile ( C. difficile ) infection but remains a novel option. We examined if FMT is an effective means of treating recurrent C. difficile infection. Methods A retrospective review of 35 patients who underwent FMT was completed. Demographics and other variables, including the use of proton pump inhibitor therapy and history of inflammatory bowel disease, were collected. Results Twenty‐five patients (71.4%) belonged to a high‐risk population (working in a hospital setting, rehabilitation center, or nursing facility) and a total of 74.3% of patients ( n = 26 patients) had no history of proton pump inhibitor use. Twenty‐five patients (71.4%) had used metronidazole prior to transplantation, 35 patients (100%) had used vancomycin, and 7 patients (20%) had used fidaxomicin for prior infection. Four patients (11.4%) had used all three antibiotics during prior treatment. Of the eight patients who had a history of inflammatory bowel disease, six (75%) experienced resolution of symptoms after transplantation. A total of 30 patients (85.7%) had resolution of their symptoms 6–8 weeks’ posttransplant, while 5 patients (14.3%) continued to have symptoms. Conclusions Our retrospective chart review supports that patients benefit from FMT in the setting of recurrent C. difficile infection.

Background: Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) guided core needle biopsies (CNB) are increasingly being performed to diagnose solid pancreatic lesions. However, studies have been conflicting in terms of CNB improving diagnostic accuracy and procedural efficiency vs fine-needle aspiration (FNA), which this study aims to elucidate.Methods: Data were prospectively collected on consecutive patients with solid pancreatic or peripancreatic lesions at a single tertiary care center from November 2015 to November 2016 that underwent either FNA or CNB. Patient demographics, characteristics of lesions, diagnostic accuracy, final and follow-up pathology, use of rapid on-site evaluation (ROSE), complications, and procedure variables were obtained.Results: A total of 75 FNA and 48 CNB were performed; of these, 13 patients had both. Mean passes were lower with CNB compared to FNA (2.4 vs 2.9, P = .02). Use of ROSE was higher for FNA (97.3% vs 68.1%, P = .001). Mean procedure time was shorter with CNB (34.1 minutes vs 51.2 minutes, P = .02) and diagnostic accuracy was similar (89.2% vs 89.4%, P = .98). There was no difference in diagnostic accuracy when ROSE was performed for CNB vs not performed (93.5% vs 85.7%, P = .58).Additionally, diagnostic accuracy of combined FNA and CNB procedures was 92.3%, which was comparable to FNA (P = .73) or CNB (P = .52) alone.Conclusion: FNA and CNB had comparable safety and diagnostic accuracy. Use of CNB resulted in less number of passes and shorter procedure time as compared to FNA. Moreover, diagnostic accuracy for CNB with or without ROSE was similar.K E Y W O R D S core biopsy, endoscopic ultrasound, fine-needle aspiration, pancreatic cancer, pancreatic mass

Objectives Acute and/or chronic pancreatitis has been implicated as an important risk factor for pancreatic cancer; however, the incidence and temporal relationship of pancreatitis before pancreatic cancer diagnosis are unclear. We aim to understand the role and incidence of pancreatitis temporally with the development of pancreatic cancer. Methods A population-based study was used to investigate a temporal relationship between pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer diagnoses. Intervals of 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months were developed. Demographical data including age, sex, and race were also recorded and analyzed. Results A total of 50,080 patients were found to have a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, of which 7420 (14.8%) had prior diagnoses of pancreatitis. Of those, 92% were between the ages of 40 and 89 years. African Americans had a higher rate of pancreatitis before cancer diagnosis when compared with whites (21.2% vs 14.8%, P < 0.0001). Further analysis revealed that pancreatitis occurred in 81.3% of patients 3 months before a diagnosis of pancreas cancer and 98.9% had established diagnoses of pancreatic cancer within 3 years. Conclusions Screening of patients older than 40 years who have pancreatitis and unclear etiology of pancreatitis may be warranted, especially in African Americans and male individuals.

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