UNASSIGNED: Although gastrointestinal (GI) comorbidities are experienced by over 90% of individuals with Rett syndrome (RTT), a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with mutations in the MECP2 gene, many neurologists and pediatricians do not rank the management of these comorbidities among the most important treatment goals for RTT. Trofinetide, the first approved pharmacologic treatment for RTT, confers improvements in RTT symptoms but is associated with adverse GI events, primarily diarrhea and vomiting. Treatment strategies for GI comorbidities and drug-associated symptoms in RTT represent an unmet clinical need.
UNASSIGNED: This perspective covers GI comorbidities experienced by those with RTT, either with or without trofinetide treatment. PubMed literature searches were undertaken on treatment recommendations for the following conditions: constipation, diarrhea, vomiting, aspiration, dysphagia, gastroesophageal reflux, nausea, gastroparesis, gastritis, and abdominal bloating.
UNASSIGNED: The authors recommend a proactive approach to management of symptomatic GI comorbidities and drug-associated symptoms in RTT to enhance drug tolerance and improve the quality of life of affected individuals. Management strategies for common GI comorbidities associated with RTT are reviewed based on authors\' clinical experience and augmented by recommendations from the literature.

UNASSIGNED: Mesenteric fibromatosis (intra-abdominal desmoid tumor) is rare, with only a few cases reported in the literature. Clinical symptoms range from asymptomatic, nausea, early satiety, abdominal pain, and gastrointestinal bleeding. Although histologically benign, such a tumor may become locally invasive, and aggressive forms contribute to significant morbidity and mortality.
UNASSIGNED: We report the case of a 52-year-old West African male with a 1-year history of intermittent hematochezia and intermittent bloating. Colonoscopy revealed a 4-mm rectal polyp and internal hemorrhoids. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed a severe duodenal stricture 4-5 cm distal to the ampulla. Further work-up with contrast-enhanced computed tomography of the abdomen and pelvis revealed a 5.0 × 3.7 × 4.3-cm mass within the mesentery, encasing the distal portion of the duodenum. Exploratory laparotomy was performed, and the mass was excised from the jejunum. Histopathology findings and immunohistochemical analysis revealed the diagnosis to be mesenteric fibromatosis (desmoid tumor), positive for nuclear β-catenin and SMA, and negative expression of STAT6, desmin, caldesmon, pan-cytokeratin, or c-KIT. The Ki67 index is <1%.
UNASSIGNED: This case report highlights the diagnostic challenges of mesenteric fibromatosis due to its nonspecific clinical presentation. Recognizing uncommon presentations of mesenteric fibromatosis and risk factors aids in early diagnosis, management, and treatment. Importantly, this also aids in the prevention of complications such as intestinal obstruction, bowel ischemia, and fistula formation.

OBJECTIVE: Abdominal distention results from abdominophrenic dyssynergia (ie, diaphragmatic contraction and abdominal wall relaxation) in patients with disorders of gut-brain interaction. This study aimed to validate a simple biofeedback procedure, guided by abdominothoracic wall motion, for treating abdominal distension.
METHODS: In this randomized, parallel, placebo-controlled trial, 42 consecutive patients (36 women and 6 men; ages 17-64 years) with meal-triggered visible abdominal distension were recruited. Recordings of abdominal and thoracic wall motion were obtained using inductance plethysmography via adaptable belts. The signal was shown to patients in the biofeedback group, who were taught to mobilize the diaphragm. In contrast, the signal was not shown to the patients in the placebo group, who were given a placebo capsule. Three sessions were performed over a 4-week intervention period, with instructions to perform exercises (biofeedback group) or to take placebo 3 times per day (control group) at home. Outcomes were assessed through response to an offending meal (changes in abdominothoracic electromyographic activity and girth) and clinical symptoms measured using daily scales for 7 days.
RESULTS: Patients in the biofeedback group (n = 19) learned to correct abdominophrenic dyssynergia triggered by the offending meal (intercostal activity decreased by a mean ± SE of 82% ± 10%, anterior wall activity increased by a mean ± SE of 97% ± 6%, and increase in girth was a mean ± SE of 108% ± 4% smaller) and experienced improved clinical symptoms (abdominal distension scores decreased by a mean ± SE of 66% ± 5%). These effects were not observed in the placebo group (all, P < .002).
CONCLUSIONS: Abdominothoracic wall movements serve as an effective biofeedback signal for correcting abdominophrenic dyssynergia and abdominal distention in patients with disorders of gut-brain interaction. ClincialTrials.gov, Number: NCT04043208.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common gastrointestinal disorder that affects a patient for their entire life. Effective treatments for IBS are scarce, leading to an increased interest in alternative treatments such as osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT). OMT uses hands-on treatment to reduce pain through various methods. By focusing on visceral techniques, OMT can restore autonomic homeostasis and increase lymphatic flow. This literature review aims to investigate the efficacy of visceral OMT in reducing the severity of IBS symptoms. Five primary research studies were evaluated in this analysis. The concluding results show that visceral OMT effectively reduces the symptoms of IBS and improves patients\' quality of life. Therefore, OMT should be considered an alternative therapy for treating IBS.

Some probiotics may be beneficial in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), but differences in species and strains used, as well as endpoints reported, have hampered attempts to make specific recommendations as to which should be preferred. We updated our previous meta-analysis examining this issue.
MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register were searched (up to March 2023). Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) recruiting adults with IBS, comparing probiotics with placebo were eligible. Dichotomous symptom data were pooled to obtain a relative risk of global symptoms, abdominal pain, or abdominal bloating or distension persisting after therapy, with a 95% confidence interval (CI). Continuous data were pooled using a standardized mean difference with a 95% CI. Adverse events data were also pooled.
We identified 82 eligible trials, containing 10,332 patients. Only 24 RCTs were at low risk of bias across all domains. For global symptoms, there was moderate certainty in the evidence for a benefit of Escherichia strains, low certainty for Lactobacillus strains and Lactobacillus plantarum 299V, and very low certainty for combination probiotics, LacClean Gold S, Duolac 7s, and Bacillus strains. For abdominal pain, there was low certainty in the evidence for a benefit of Saccharomyces cerevisae I-3856 and Bifidobacterium strains, and very low certainty for combination probiotics, Lactobacillus, Saccharomyces, and Bacillus strains. For abdominal bloating or distension there was very low certainty in the evidence for a benefit of combination probiotics and Bacillus strains. The relative risk of experiencing any adverse event, in 55 trials, including more than 7000 patients, was not significantly higher with probiotics.
Some combinations of probiotics or strains may be beneficial in IBS. However, certainty in the evidence for efficacy by GRADE criteria was low to very low across almost all of our analyses.

UNASSIGNED: Functional abdominal bloating is one of the functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs). Here, we aimed to investigate and compare the effects of probiotics and colloidal bismuth subcitrate on abdominal bloating.
UNASSIGNED: This was a double-blinded randomized clinical trial performed on 125 patients with functional abdominal bloating in Isfahan in 2020-2021. At the beginning of the study, information on the frequency of abdominal bloating, its severity, the occurrence of early satiety, frequency of borborygmus, frequency of belching, and the frequency of defecation per week was collected. Patients were divided into 3 groups receiving familact probiotic pills that contained 7 bacterial strains, colloidal bismuth subcitrate tablets, and placebo pills for 4 weeks. Afterwards, the frequency and severity of abdominal bloating and other symptoms were compared.
UNASSIGNED: After 2 weeks, patients in the probiotic group had a significantly lower frequency of abdominal bloating compared to other groups (P= 0.006). After 4 and 8 weeks, patients in the probiotic group and bismuth group had a lower frequency of bloating )3.18±3.02, 4.11±3.34) compared to placebo (5.10±3.54) (P= 0.001 and P= 0.037, respectively). During the study, patients in the probiotic group had a significantly lower bloating severity (41.90% had no symptom) compared to bismuth and placebo groups (12.50 ,12.00% had no symptom) (p< 0.05). The frequency of borborygmus was significantly lower in the probiotic group after 2 and 4 weeks during the study compared to other groups (1.62±0.2 Vs 2.69±0.3, 2.45±0.3 ) (P= 0.010 and P= 0.013, respectively).
UNASSIGNED: According to our data, consumption of probiotics improves the frequency and severity of abdominal bloating and reduces borborygmus. Colloidal bismuth subcitrate also has significant effects.

There is no term for bloating in Spanish and distension is a very technical word. \"Inflammation\"/\"swelling\" are the most frequently used expressions for bloating/distension in Mexico, and pictograms are more effective than verbal descriptors (VDs) for bloating/distension in general GI and Rome III-IBS patients. However, their effectiveness in the general population and in subjects with Rome IV-DGBI is unknown. We analyzed the use of pictograms for assessing bloating/distension in the general population in Mexico.
The Rome Foundation Global Epidemiology Study (RFGES) in Mexico (n = 2001) included questions about the presence of VDs \"inflammation\"/\"swelling\" and abdominal distension, their comprehension, and pictograms (normal, bloating, distension, both). We compared the pictograms with the Rome IV question about the frequency of experiencing bloating/distension, and with the VDs.
\"Inflammation\"/\"swelling\" was reported by 51.5% and distension by 23.8% of the entire study population; while 1.2% and 25.3% did not comprehend \"Inflammation\"/\"swelling\" or distension, respectively. Subjects without (31.8%) or not comprehending \"inflammation\"/\"swelling\"/distension (68.4%) reported bloating/distension by pictograms. Bloating and/or distension by the pictograms were much more frequent in those with DGBI: 38.3% (95%CI: 31.7-44.9) vs. without: 14.5% (12.0-17.0); and in subjects with distension by VDs: 29.4% (25.4-33.3) vs. without: 17.2% (14.9-19.5). Among subjects with bowel disorders, those with IBS reported bloating/distension by pictograms the most (93.8%) and those with functional diarrhea the least (71.4%).
Pictograms are more effective than VDs for assessing the presence of bloating/distension in Spanish Mexico. Therefore, they should be used to study these symptoms in epidemiological research.

Most female patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) complain of abdominal bloating rather than abdominal pain and diarrhea. The higher incidence in women could be due to the so-called dysfunctional gas handling. Since diet seems the most effective and durable strategy for managing IBS symptoms, we aimed to evaluate the effects of a 12 week diet based on a relatively new cereal, Tritordeum (TBD), on gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, anthropometric and bioelectrical impedance parameters, and psychological profiles in 18 diarrhea-predominant IBS (IBS-D) female patients with abdominal bloating as the dominant symptom. The IBS Severity Scoring System (IBS-SSS), the Symptom Checklist-90 Revised, the Italian version of the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey, and the IBS-Quality of Life questionnaire were administered. The TBD reduces the IBS-SSS \"Intensity of abdominal bloating\" with a concomitant improvement in the anthropometric profile. No correlation was found between \"Intensity of abdominal bloating\" and \"Abdominal circumference\". Anxiety, depression, somatization, interpersonal sensitivity, and phobic and avoidance manifestations were significantly reduced after TBD. Lastly, anxiety was correlated with \"Intensity of abdominal bloating\". Overall, these results suggest the possibility of lowering abdominal bloating and improving the psychological profile of female IBS-D patients using a diet based on an alternative grain such as Tritordeum.

UNASSIGNED: Abdominal bloating (AB) is a common medical complaint known to diminish patients\' quality of life. However, lifestyle and behavioural changes could mitigate its expression and severity. This study sought to explore the health beliefs, intentions and health-promoting behaviours among people with AB in Kelantan, Malaysia.
UNASSIGNED: The theory of planned behaviour (TPB) was employed to explore the factors that influence the management of adults with AB, namely health beliefs and intentions. An interview guide was developed by adapting the TPB and the findings of prior studies concerning the factors associated with AB management. All eligible participants took part in in-depth interviews.
UNASSIGNED: The mean age of the participants was 32.5 years old (standard deviation [SD] = 14.19 years old) and the majority of participants were female (58.3%). The themes and sub-themes that emerged following the application of the TPB framework represented the qualitative results of this study, which indicated that the health beliefs, intentions and health-promoting behaviours observed among people with AB were closely related.
UNASSIGNED: The findings of this study suggest that the adoption of a healthy lifestyle could be an effective means of improving AB. Thus, it is vital to implement a health education programme that promotes health-related beliefs and intentions in order to trigger health-promoting behaviour among people with AB.

Human intestinal spirochetosis (HIS) is a condition where spirochetes, a group of spiral-shaped bacteria, attach to the apical membrane of the human colorectal epithelium. Although most findings of HIS are simply incidental discoveries found during screening colonoscopies, the ability to mimic the presentation of inflammatory bowel diseases should prompt consideration of this condition as part of a working differential diagnosis. Herein, we present the case of a 57-year-old bisexual, African American male with a medical history of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) on antiretroviral therapy (ART) with an undetectable viral load that presented for an elective, outpatient colonoscopy after experiencing four months of intermittent bloating and hematochezia. Histologic examination of colonic biopsies confirmed a diagnosis of HIS. The nonspecific clinical presentation in the setting of well-controlled HIV makes HIS a formidable diagnostic challenge that requires increased awareness.