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ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Since 2012, a new technique for resection of large polyps has been described, the underwater endoscopic mucosal resection (UEMR). Some advantages that emerge from it is the needless of injection in submucosal layer and a greater chance of complete capture of the polyp. OBJECTIVE: There are few studies of UEMR in Brazil. The aim of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of this technique in one Brazilian center. METHODS: This case series was conducted from February to December of 2020. Colorectal polyps greater than 9 mm without features of deep submucosal invasion were resected using UEMR. RESULTS: Twenty-four large polyps were resected with the UEMR approach from 24 patients. The mean size of the polys was 19 mm, ranging from 12 to 35 mm. All lesions were successful resected and 66% (16/24) were resected en bloc. In histologic analyses, most of them were adenomas (70.8%) and only one had deep submucosal invasion. There were no cases of acute complications, such perforation or acute bleeding. CONCLUSION: The UEMR is a safe and feasible procedure. With the emerging data on the procedure, it seems to be a wonderful tool in preventing colorectal cancer and its applicability and scope should be encourage to surpass reference centers.

Introduction. Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is an acute liver decompensation in cirrhotic patients, which leads to organ failures and high short-term mortality. The treatment is based on the management of complications and, in severe cases, liver transplantation. Since specific treatment is unavailable, we aimed to evaluate the safety and initial efficacy of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSC) in patients with ACLF Grades 2 and 3, a population excluded from previous clinical trials. Methods. This is a randomized placebo-controlled phase I-II single center study, which enrolled 9 cirrhotic patients from 2018 to 2020, regardless of the etiology. The control group (n = 5) was treated with standard medical therapy (SMT) and placebo infusion of saline. The intervention group (n = 4) received SMT plus 5 infusions of 1 × 106 cells/kg of BM-MSC for 3 weeks. Both groups were monitored for 90 days. A Chi-square test was used for qualitative variables, and the t-test and Mann–Whitney U test for quantitative variables. The Kaplan–Meier estimator was used to build survival curves. In this study, we followed the intention-to-treat analysis, with a significance of 5%. Results. Nine patients with a mean Child–Pugh (CP) of 12.3, MELD of 38.4, and CLIF-C score of 50.7 were recruited. Hepatitis C and alcohol were the main etiologies. The average infusion per patient was 2.9 and only 3 patients (2 in control and 1 in the BM-MSC group) received all the protocol infusions. There were no infusion-related side effects, although one patient in the intervention group presented hypernatremia and a gastric ulcer, after the third and fifth infusions, respectively. The survival rate after 90 days was 20% (1/5) for placebo versus 25% (1/4) for the BM-MSC. The patient who completed the entire MSC protocol showed a significant improvement in CP (C-14 to B-9), MELD (32 to 22), and ACLF (grade 3 to 0). Conclusion. BM-MSC infusion is safe and feasible in patients with ACLF Grades 2 and 3.

Introduction. Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) has a deleterious clinical impact in end-stage liver disease, and multidrug resistance has increased, raising concern about effectiveness of traditional antibiotic regimens. Patients and Methods. Single-center retrospective study of ascitic fluid infections in cirrhotic patients. Results. We analyzed medical records related to 2129 culture-positive ascitic fluid and found 183 samples from cirrhotic patients. There were 113 monobacterial SBP cases from 97 cirrhotic patients; 57% of patients were male; hepatitis C and alcohol were the main etiologies for cirrhosis. Multidrug resistant bacteria were isolated in 46.9% of SBP samples, and third-generation cephalosporin and quinolone resistant reached 38.9% and 25.7% of SBP cases. Conclusion. SBP due to multidrug resistant bacteria is a growing problem, and one should consider reported resistance profiles for the decision-making process of empirical first-line treatment prescription.

Introduction: Metabolism of iron is altered in patients infected with chronically Hepatitis C. The aim of this study is to compare compare the hepcidin levels in between individuais chronically infected with HCV and uninfected individuals. The aim of this study is to compare the hepcidin serum levels between individuals chronically infected with HCV and uninfected individuals. Methods: A cross-sectional study evaluating hepcidin serum levels of mono-infected HCV (n=29), naive, non-diabetic, non-cirrhotic and non-obese patients by means of ELISA, compared to uninfected patients (n=9) with the same characteristics. The degree of liver fibrosis, according to the METAVIR scale on liver biopsies, the lipid profile, the resistance insulin level, as calculated on HOMA-IR (homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance), the interleukin-6 (IL-6) and the ferritin serum levels were also measured. Results: The levels of hepcidin were significantly lower in HCV patients compared to controls (8.4 pg/mL (±4.94) vs. 19.51 pg/mL (±5.51)) with p

Introdução: A Hepatite C tem uma prevalência estimada em cerca de 170 milhões de pessoas mundialmente e cursa com grande morbimortalidade. O tratamento deste vírus tem se alterado significativamente nos últimos anos, porém, no Brasil, ainda imperam os tratamentos baseados em interferon convencional ou interferon-peguilado associado à ribavirina. Métodos: estudo de coorte, retrospectivo, conduzido no Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre. Foram incluídos 237 pacientes com Hepatite C tratados com interferon e ribavirina ou interferon-peguilado e ribavirina Resultados: A taxa global de resposta virológica sustentada obtida foi de 33,33%, sendo 37,93% nos pacientes com regime baseado no interferon convencional e 32,69% nos com interferon-peguilado. A análise demonstrou uma maior taxa de resposta virológica sustentada entre os pacientes que apresentaram, à análise genética, expressão CC do polimorfismo da IL 28B. Palavras-chave: Hepatite C; interferon; resposta virológica sustentada