UNASSIGNED: Understanding the quality of life and the factors that influence it for patients with short bowel syndrome (SBS) and their caregivers is of utmost importance in order to enhance their well-being. Therefore, This study aimed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the impact of SBS on patients and their caregivers, as well as its associated factors, by synthesizing the available evidence.
UNASSIGNED: A systematic review of the literature was done using PubMed, Embase databases, CNKI, and ISPOR conference papers. Included articles were manually searched to identify any other relevant studies. Quality was assessed using appropriate Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tools.
UNASSIGNED: This review included 16 studies, comprising 15 observational studies and 1 randomized controlled trial. The findings revealed that the QoL of patients with SBS was lower than that of the general population regarding physical functioning and psychological domain. Meanwhile, caregivers experienced challenges in maintaining their QoL. The QoL of SBS patients was found to be influenced by various factors such as treatment, age, sex, stoma, and small intestine length. Among them, the treatment is the most noteworthy factor that can be effectively improved through external interventions.
UNASSIGNED: While numerous studies have provided insights into the compromised QoL experienced by individuals with SBS and their caregivers, there remains a scarcity of large-sample quantitative investigations examining the determinants of QoL. The existing body of literature on caregivers is also notably deficient.

UNASSIGNED: Levothyroxine is a common prescribed drug. Many medications and food, however, can interfere with its bioavailability. The aim of this review was to summarize the medications, food and beverages that interact with levothyroxine and to assess their effects, mechanisms and treatments.
UNASSIGNED: A systematic review on interfering substances that interact with levothyroxine was performed. Web of Science, Embase, PubMed, the Cochrane library, grey literature from other sources and the lists of references were searched for human studies comparing the levothyroxine efficacy with and without interfering substances. The patient characteristics, drug classes, effects and mechanism were extracted. The NHLBI study quality assessment tools and the JBI critical appraisal checklist were used to assess the quality of included studies.
UNASSIGNED: A total of 107 articles with 128 studies were included. Drugs interactions were revealed in calcium and iron supplements, proton pump inhibitors, bile acid sequestrants, phosphate binders, sex hormones, anticonvulsants and other drugs. Some food and beverage could also induce malabsorption. Proposed mechanisms included direct complexing, alkalization, alteration of serum thyroxine-binding globulin levels and acceleration of levothyroxine catabolism via deiodination. Dose adjustment, administration separation and discontinuation of interfering substances can eliminate the interactions. Liquid solutions and soft-gel capsules could eliminate the malabsorption due to chelation and alkalization. The qualities of most included studies were moderate.
UNASSIGNED: Lots of medications and food can impair the bioavailability of levothyroxine. Clinicians, patients and pharmaceutical companies should be aware of the possible interactions. Further well-designed studies are needed to provide more solid evidence on treatment and mechanisms.

Gut microbiota (GM) appears critical for gastrointestinal symptoms, but whether alterations in GM are associated with increased risk of postoperative gastrointestinal dysfunction (POGID) in older patients with colon cancer (CC) undergoing elective colon resection remains unclear.
This study aims to prospectively recruit 284 elderly patients with CC undergoing elective colon resection. GM of fresh faeces specimens is characterised using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Data are collected preoperatively, daily postoperatively during the in-hospital stay, and follow-up visits are scheduled four times within 30 days after discharge. Associations with POGID will be investigated using logistic regression models to calculate ORs with 95% CIs. The models include the adjustment for age, sex, frequency of spicy diet, coffee drinking and tea drinking, tobacco and alcohol history, diabetes, obesity, gastroenteritis, preoperative gut microbial composition. Furthermore, we will use joint modelling for longitudinal data to study several outcome variables simultaneously.
This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of West China Hospital, Sichuan University (IRB Number: 20201334). The results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications or conference presentations.
It has been registered in PROSPERO, number CRD42019145032. It has been registered in the Chinese clinical trial registry, number ChiCTR2100043646.

Although levothyroxine is one of the most prescribed medications in the world, its bioavailability has been reported to be impaired by many factors, including interfering drugs or foods and concomitant diseases, and persistent hypothyroidism with a high dose of levothyroxine is thus elicited. Persistent hypothyroidism can also be induced by noninterchangeability between formulations and poor compliance. To address these issues some strategies have been developed. Novel formulations (liquid solutions and soft gel capsules) have been designed to eliminate malabsorption. Some other delivery routes (injections, suppositories, sprays, and sublingual and transdermal administrations) are aimed at circumventing different difficulties in dosing, such as thyroid emergencies and dysphagia. Moreover, nanomaterials have been used to develop delivery systems for the sustained release of levothyroxine to improve patient compliance and reduce costs. Some delivery systems encapsulating nanoparticles show promising release profiles. In this review, we first summarize the medical conditions that interfere with the bioavailability of oral levothyroxine and discuss the underlying mechanisms and treatments. The efficacy of liquid solutions and soft gel capsules are systematically evaluated. We further summarize the novel delivery routes for levothyroxine and their possible applications. Nanomaterials in the levothyroxine field are then discussed and compared based on their load and release profile. We hope the article provides novel insights into the drug delivery of levothyroxine.

The organic solute transporter α-β (OSTα-OSTβ) is a heteromeric transporter localized to the basolateral membranes of liver, intestinal, and kidney epithelial cells and functions to extrude bile acids and steroids from these tissues. OSTα-OSTβ expression is variable among species and tissues. This transporter plays important roles in maintaining BA homeostasis and may correlate with the progression of diseases relevant to cholestasis or BA malabsorption. Crosstalk between multiple nuclear receptors and cytokines reveals a more intricate means of regulating OSTα-OSTβ. Human OSTα/β and mouse Ostα/β promoters are endowed with binding sites for several transcription factors. This review aims to uncover the current regulatory mechanism of OSTα-OSTβ, explain the rationale underlying this approach and provide practical evidence. Therapeutic strategies targeting OSTα-OSTβ or its upstream regulators may be essential to correct abnormal BA levels and intervene in the progression of diseases relevant to the disturbance of BA homeostasis.

Microvillus inclusion disease (MVID) is a rare inherited and invariably fatal enteropathy, characterized by severe intractable secretory diarrhea and nutrient malabsorption. No cure exists, and patients typically die during infancy because of treatment-related complications. The need for alternative treatment strategies is evident. Several pharmacological interventions with variable successes have been tried and reported for individual patients as part of their clinical care. Unfortunately, these interventions and their outcomes have remained hidden in case reports and have not been reviewed. Further, recent advances regarding MVID pathogenesis have shed new light on the outcomes of these pharmacological interventions and offer suggestions for future clinical research and trials. Hence, an inventory of reported pharmacological interventions in MVID, their rationales and outcomes, and a discussion of these in the light of current knowledge is opportune. Together with a discussion on MVID-specific pharmacokinetic, -dynamic, and -genetic concerns that pose unique challenges regarding pharmacological strategies, we envision that this paper will aid researchers and clinicians in their efforts to develop pharmacological interventions to combat this devastating disease.

Lactose is the main carbohydrate in human and mammalian milk. Lactose requires enzymatic hydrolysis by lactase into D-glucose and D-galactose before it can be absorbed. Term infants express sufficient lactase to digest about one liter of breast milk daily. Physiological lactose malabsorption in infancy confers beneficial prebiotic effects, including the establishment of Bifidobacterium-rich fecal microbiota. In many populations, lactase levels decline after weaning (lactase non-persistence; LNP). LNP affects about 70% of the world\'s population and is the physiological basis for primary lactose intolerance (LI). Persistence of lactase beyond infancy is linked to several single nucleotide polymorphisms in the lactase gene promoter region on chromosome 2. Primary LI generally does not manifest clinically before 5 years of age. LI in young children is typically caused by underlying gut conditions, such as viral gastroenteritis, giardiasis, cow\'s milk enteropathy, celiac disease or Crohn\'s disease. Therefore, LI in childhood is mostly transient and improves with resolution of the underlying pathology. There is ongoing confusion between LI and cow\'s milk allergy (CMA) which still leads to misdiagnosis and inappropriate dietary management. In addition, perceived LI may cause unnecessary milk restriction and adverse nutritional outcomes. The treatment of LI involves the reduction, but not complete elimination, of lactose-containing foods. By contrast, breastfed infants with suspected CMA should undergo a trial of a strict cow\'s milk protein-free maternal elimination diet. If the infant is not breastfed, an extensively hydrolyzed or amino acid-based formula and strict cow\'s milk avoidance are the standard treatment for CMA. The majority of infants with CMA can tolerate lactose, except when an enteropathy with secondary lactase deficiency is present.

Bile acids (BAs) are important endogenous signaling molecules that play vital roles in the pathological development of various diseases including colitis-associated cancer (CAC). BAs were previously found dysregulated under conditions of CAC; however, the exact patterns and underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely elusive. Based on the development of a method for comprehensive analysis of BAs, this study aims to elucidate the dysregulation patterns and involved mechanisms in a typical CAC model induced by azoxymethane (AOM)/dextran sodium sulfate (DSS). CAC mice showed decreased BAs transformation in gut and glucuronidation in colon, leading to accumulation of primary BAs but reduction of secondary BAs in colon. CAC mice were characterized by an accumulation of BAs in various compartments except ileum, which is in line with repressed ileal FXR-FGF15 feedback signaling and the increased expression of hepatic CYP7A1. The compromised ileal FXR-FGF15 signaling was caused in part by the reduced absorption of FXR ligands including free and tauro-conjungated BAs due to the downregulation of various transporters of BAs in the ileum of CAC mice.

Revisionary bariatric surgery procedures are becoming more frequent. Facing the challenge of complicated digestive tract changes after redo surgery, it is crucial to choose an appropriate method. Duodeno-ileal omega switch (DIOS), with growing clinical value as an easy malabsorptive procedure, has emerged as a treatment option. We would like to present a case of a 52-year-old obese male patient with a history of laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding and removal of a lesser curvature as a revision procedure to restore the restriction. In order to improve the patient\'s health outcome, a two-stage re-revision procedure was performed, including DIOS to reduce the weight of the patient and a gastric pouch reconstruction in order to achieve a better satiety effect. This case study illustrates the intrinsic potential of malabsorption surgery and makes us believe that it may be used as the primary operation in two-staged procedures for revisionary surgical treatment.

With the rapid development of the knowledge and techniques in bariatric surgery, as well as extensive expansion of indications for metabolic operations, surgeons have started to realize that the procedures they choose are not always suited to the needs and behavior of patients. Second and very frequently third revisional procedures are thus necessary in order to achieve desired outcomes and fulfill patients\' expectations. Restoration of restriction is commonly the first procedure, but not all may benefit from it. We hence want to illustrate the decision-making process by presenting a patient with the background of initial Rouxen-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) and redo-RYGB, who then underwent a further revision by a 2-stage approach due to weight regain. The first stage involved shortening of the common channel and the second one reconstruction of his gastric pouch with duodenal switch (DS). Consequently we wish to focus here on a discussion about operative techniques and strategies to improve outcomes in such patients.