The prevalence of human astroviruses was tested in patients with acute gastroenteritis by using conventional duplex reverse transcription (RT)-PCR and electrophoresis. Diarrheal fecal samples were collected from 9,597 patients at local hospitals in Seoul. The prevalence of astroviruses was 1.0% (94/9,597 patients; mostly infants), and that of sapoviruses was 0.1% (14/9,597 patients). Age- and gender-wise analyses were carried out on 29 astrovirus-positive patients having complete information on file regarding their age, gender, and other particulars. The results were higher in patients of ages 0 to 14 yr, and 69.0% of the astrovirus-positive patients were females, of which 69.2% were infants (0 to 12 months), and 61.5% were 1-4 yr old. Notably, in the case of 5 to 78-yr-old acute gastroenteritis patients, 100% were females.
Acute Disease ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Age Factors ; Aged ; Astroviridae Infections/complications/*epidemiology/virology ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; DNA, Viral/analysis ; Feces/virology ; Female ; Gastroenteritis/complications/*diagnosis ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Mamastrovirus/genetics/*isolation & purification ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Sapovirus/genetics/isolation & purification ; Sex Factors ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence and risk factors of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in community subjects with culture-proven bacterial gastroenteritis. METHODS: This was a prospective, community-based, cohort study, which followed patients with a recent history of culture-proven bacterial gastroenteritis. IBS was diagnosed with the use of the Rome II criteria at 3 and 6 months after bacterial dysentery. RESULTS: Sixty five cases were included and completed the 6 month follow-up. Thirty four cases (52.3%) were female. Salmonella was the pathogen most frequently identified and seen in 41 patients (63.1%). The cumulative incidence of IBS among patients with microbiologically proven bacterial gastroenteritis within a community was 9.2% and 12.3% at 3 and 6 months of follow-up, respectively. The duration of initial diarrhea (> or =7 days) was associated with an increased risk for the development of IBS (aOR, 14.50 [95% CI, 1.38-152.72]; p=0.022). CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that the incidence of IBS among patients with culture-proven bacterial gastroenteritis within a community is similar to that reported among Western populations. A large, prospective study is encouraged to confirm our results and to evaluate the influence of the microbial species on the epidemiology of IBS in Asian populations.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Cohort Studies ; Diarrhea/complications ; Dysentery/complications ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gastroenteritis/*complications/epidemiology/microbiology ; Humans ; Incidence ; Irritable Bowel Syndrome/*diagnosis/epidemiology/etiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Odds Ratio ; Prospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Salmonella/isolation & purification ; Shigella/isolation & purification ; Young Adult

No abstract available.
Female ; Gastroenteritis/*complications ; Humans ; Irritable Bowel Syndrome/*diagnosis ; Male

Laribacter hongkongensis is an emerging pathogen in patients with community-acquired gastroenteritis and traveler's diarrhea. We herein report a case of L. hongkongensis infection in a 24-yr-old male with liver cirrhosis complicated by Wilson's disease. He was admitted to a hospital with only abdominal distension. On day 6 following admission, he complained of abdominal pain and his body temperature reached 38.6degrees C. The results of peritoneal fluid evaluation revealed a leukocyte count of 1,180/microL (polymorphonuclear leukocyte 74%). Growth on blood culture was identified as a gram-negative bacillus. The isolate was initially identified as Acinetobacter lwoffii by conventional identification methods in the clinical microbiology laboratory, but was later identified as L. hongkongensis on the basis of molecular identification. The patient was successfully treated with cefotaxime. To the best of our knowledge, this case is the first report of hospital-acquired L. hongkongensis bacteremia with neutrophilic ascites.
Acinetobacter/isolation & purification ; Acinetobacter Infections/complications/diagnosis/microbiology ; Bacteremia/complications/*microbiology ; Cefotaxime/therapeutic use ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Gastroenteritis/complications/*diagnosis/*microbiology ; Hepatolenticular Degeneration/complications/microbiology ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis/complications/microbiology ; Male ; Neisseriaceae/*isolation & purification ; Phylogeny ; Republic of Korea ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Eosinophilic gastroenteritis (EG) is a rare disease characterized by prominent eosinophilic infiltration that may involve a variable depth of one or more gastrointestinal organs. We analyzed the largest number of patients with EG among the studies carried out at a single center in Korea. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical, laboratory, endoscopic, and radiologic features, management, and clinical outcome in 17 patients who were diagnosed as EG from January 1994 to Febuary 2008. RESULTS: Median age was 36 (2-67 years). Two of the 17 patients had a history of allergy. The most common symptoms were abdominal pain and diarrhea. Fifteen patients (88.2%) had hypereosinophilia. The ESR was moderately raised in 6 out of 14 patients. Eleven patients (64.7%) had predominant involvement of the mucosa, 1 (5.9%) of muscularis, and 5 (29.4%) of subserosa. EGD revealed non-specific findings such as erythema and edema. Abdominal Computed tomography revealed gastrointestinal wall thickenings of the involved organ, and all of 5 cases of the subserosal type had ascites. Thirteen patients (76.5%) were improved by corticosteroid treatment. Among five patients who had been followed for more than one year (12-84 months), two experienced relapse after discontinuing corticosteroids. CONCLUSIONS: EG should be considered in the differential diagnosis of unexplained gastrointestinal symptoms even in the absence of peripheral eosinophilia and in non-specific endoscopic findings.
Adolescent ; Adrenal Cortex Hormones/therapeutic use ; Adult ; Aged ; Azathioprine/therapeutic use ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Endoscopy, Digestive System ; Eosinophilia/complications/*diagnosis/radiography ; Female ; Gastroenteritis/*diagnosis/drug therapy/radiography ; Humans ; Immunosuppressive Agents/therapeutic use ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Wegener's granulomatosis (WG) is a disease characterized by a granulomatous necrotizing vasculitis of small vessels. Although any organ systems can be involved, gastrointestinal involvement in WG is notably uncommon. We present a case of 67-year-old man who was admitted with abdominal pain and diarrhea lasting for 3 weeks. Colonoscopy and abdominal CT scan revealed vasculitis and multiple mesenteric lymphadenopathy. Jejunum and mesenteric lymph nodes biopsies confirmed limited form of WG. The present case indicates that WG might involve only gastrointestinal tract and the histological confirmation is important for diagnosis.
Aged ; Anti-Inflammatory Agents/therapeutic use ; Colonoscopy ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Gastroenteritis/complications/*diagnosis ; Humans ; Lymphatic Diseases/complications/*diagnosis/pathology ; Male ; Prednisolone/therapeutic use ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Wegener Granulomatosis/complications/*diagnosis/drug therapy

Wegener's granulomatosis (WG) is a disease characterized by a granulomatous necrotizing vasculitis of small vessels. Although any organ systems can be involved, gastrointestinal involvement in WG is notably uncommon. We present a case of 67-year-old man who was admitted with abdominal pain and diarrhea lasting for 3 weeks. Colonoscopy and abdominal CT scan revealed vasculitis and multiple mesenteric lymphadenopathy. Jejunum and mesenteric lymph nodes biopsies confirmed limited form of WG. The present case indicates that WG might involve only gastrointestinal tract and the histological confirmation is important for diagnosis.
Aged ; Anti-Inflammatory Agents/therapeutic use ; Colonoscopy ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Gastroenteritis/complications/*diagnosis ; Humans ; Lymphatic Diseases/complications/*diagnosis/pathology ; Male ; Prednisolone/therapeutic use ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Wegener Granulomatosis/complications/*diagnosis/drug therapy

Eosinophilic gasteroenteritis is an uncommon disease with variable clinical features characterized by eosinophilic infiltration. Clinical manifestations range from non-specific gastrointestinal complaints such as nausea, vomiting, crampy abdominal pain, and diarrhea to specific findings such as malabsorption, protein loosing enteropathy, luminal obstruction, eosinophilic ascites and effusion. We report here on a case of eosinophilic gastroenteritis causing enterobiliary fistula which is an extremely unusual complication.
Aged ; Biliary Fistula/diagnosis/*etiology ; Cholangiopancreatography, Magnetic Resonance ; Duodenal Diseases/*etiology ; Eosinophilia/complications ; Gastroenteritis/*complications ; Humans ; Intestinal Fistula/diagnosis/*etiology ; Male

Child ; Colitis ; diagnosis ; Colon, Sigmoid ; pathology ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Diarrhea ; etiology ; Eosinophilia ; complications ; diagnosis ; Female ; Gastroenteritis ; complications ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Humans ; Sigmoid Diseases ; complications ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Sigmoidoscopy

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Eosinophilic gastroenteritis (EG) is an uncommon disease with various gastrointestinal symptoms characterized by eosinophilic infiltration. Its incidence increases recently. We investigated the clinicopathologic features of the patients with EG. METHODS: Between January 1970 and July 2003, a total of 28 cases of EG have been reported. By adding 3 cases diagnosed in the Eulji Hospital, we evaluated the 31 cases of EG for the symptoms, laboratory findings, histologic findings, method of treatment, and allergic history. RESULTS: The incidence increased during 1990s. The predominant site of the eosinophilic infiltration was mucosa in 10 cases, muscularis in 5 cases, and subserosa in 5 cases. The remaining 11 patients had the EG in two sites. The most frequently affected organ was small intestine (12 patients), but there were 12 cases which more than two organs involved. Melena and hematochezia were dominant findings in the patients whose infiltration occurred in mucosa. On the other hand, ascites was a dominant finding in the cases that infiltration occurred in subserosa or involving over 2 layers. There was no difference in eosinophilia, clinical symptoms, and duration between two groups according to the symptom duration for less or more than 30 days. Additionally, seven patients had allergc histories. Peripheral eosinophilia was found in 24 cases. There was no recurrence of EG after the treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our retrospective studies about EG reported in Korea could not clarify whether EG is related to allergy. Recently, the occurrence of EG is increasing and it is frequently involved in young men. The most apparent finding include peripheral eosinophilia. There is no significant clinical feature which is consistent with Klein's classification, though blood loss was more common in mucosal type and ascites was more common in serosal type and in case above two layers.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; English Abstract ; Eosinophilia/complications/*diagnosis ; Female ; Gastroenteritis/complications/*diagnosis ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged