Retinopathy associated with combination therapy of interferon alpha-2b and ribavirin tends to develop in patients with hypertension.

The characterization of the amino acid sequences of ISDR may be helpful for predicting a relapse after combination therapy in patients with genotype 2 HCV infection.

Background: A number of noninvasive tests have been developed to establish the presence of Helicobacter pylori infection. However, thus far these tests have only been capable of detecting its presence. An increasing number of antibiotic-resistant H. pylori infections have been reported and they are known to be correlated with 23S rRNA single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). We hypothesized that genomic analysis of H. pylori recovered from gastric washes could not only be less invasive, but also useful as a screening test and for assessing the outcome of eradication therapy. Methods: Biopsy specimens and gastric washes were collected from 100 patients during endoscopic examination. Then we analyzed 23S rRNA, ureA, and cagA genes using PCR and high-throughput pyrosequencing analysis. Results: Forty-five percent (44/97) of patients tested positive for ureA and 42.3% (41/97) tested positive by a rapid urease test. One hundred percent (35/35) of patients who tested positive by both methods were observed to have the cagA gene. Among these 35 patients, 23S rRNA SNPs were present in 34.3% (12/35). Conclusions: Gastric wash-based PCR and a pyrosequencing assay were used to rapidly detect and estimate the number of 23S rRNA SNPs in clinical isolates of H. pylori. Not only is this a less invasive technique, but it can also diagnose drug resistance.

The results indicate that short-treatment extension of PEG IFN plus RBV treatment protocols in EVR patients can improve overall SVR rates.

Xenon computed tomography showed that PVTBF increased after EIS for EGV and HATBF decreased in response to an increase in PVTBF.