Lauren D Nephew, Susan M Rawl, Allie Carter, Nicole Garcia, Patrick O Monahan, John Holden, Marwan Ghabril, Eleazar Montalvan-Sanchez, Kavish Patidar, Archita P Desai, Eric Orman, Naga Chalasani
{"title":"Health literacy and cumulative social disadvantage are associated with survival and transplant in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a prospective study.","authors":"Lauren D Nephew, Susan M Rawl, Allie Carter, Nicole Garcia, Patrick O Monahan, John Holden, Marwan Ghabril, Eleazar Montalvan-Sanchez, Kavish Patidar, Archita P Desai, Eric Orman, Naga Chalasani","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001537","DOIUrl":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001537","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>To investigate how individual social determinants of health (SDOH) and cumulative social disadvantage (CSD) affect survival and receipt of liver transplant (LT) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We enrolled 139 adult patients from two Indianapolis hospital systems between June 2019 and April 2022. Structured questionnaires collected SDOH and social risk factor data. We compared SDOH and CSD by race, gender and disease aetiology, assigning one point per adverse SDOH. Multivariable competing risk survival analysis assessed associations between SDOH, CSD, survival and LT receipt.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Black patients experienced higher CSD than white patients in the cohort (5.4±2.5 vs 3.2±2.1, p<0.001). Black patients were significantly more likely to have household incomes <US$15 000 per year (52.6% vs 18.3%, p=0.003), to be insured by Medicaid (57.9% vs 33.0%, p=0.04), and to live in high Social Deprivation Index areas (68.4% vs 17.5%, p<0.001) than white patients. Patients with hepatitis C virus and alcohol-related liver disease had more adverse SDOH than those with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease, while there were no significant differences by gender. On multivariable analysis, a higher health literacy score was a significant predictor of survival (HR 2.54, 95% CI 1.19 to 5.43 CI, p=0.02) and higher CSD was associated with a lower probability of receipt of LT (HR 0.80, 95% CI 0.68 to 0.95, p=0.01).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>There are significant racial and aetiology-related differences in SDOH burden. Low health literacy and high CSD are linked to worse outcomes in HCC patients. Health literacy screening and targeted interventions for those with high CSD could improve LT access and survival rates.</p>","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2024-10-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11448155/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142364439","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Danae Rodriguez Gatta, Laura Huidobro, Fanny Petermann-Rocha, Vanessa Van de Wyngard, Franco Godoy, Vicente Cid, Macarena Garrido, Paz Cook, Juan Carlos Roa, Claudio Vargas, Juan Carlos Araya, Sandra Cortes, Francisco Cruz, Jill Koshiol, Marco Arrese, Catterina Ferreccio
{"title":"Sex disparities in gallstone disease: insights from the MAUCO prospective population-based cohort study.","authors":"Danae Rodriguez Gatta, Laura Huidobro, Fanny Petermann-Rocha, Vanessa Van de Wyngard, Franco Godoy, Vicente Cid, Macarena Garrido, Paz Cook, Juan Carlos Roa, Claudio Vargas, Juan Carlos Araya, Sandra Cortes, Francisco Cruz, Jill Koshiol, Marco Arrese, Catterina Ferreccio","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001457","DOIUrl":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001457","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>To investigate factors associated with the prevalence and incidence of gallstone disease (GSD) in women and men of the MAUCO population-based prospective cohort.</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>8948 MAUCO participants (aged 38-74 years) underwent abdominal ultrasound at baseline (2015-2019); 4385 received follow-up ultrasound at years 2 or 4. Factors associated with prevalent GSD were assessed using Poisson multiple regression and with incident GSD using Cox regression models.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>GSD prevalence was 40.4% in women (13.1% gallstones, 27.3% cholecystectomies) and 17.1% in men (8.9% gallstones, 8.2% cholecystectomies). In men, GSD prevalence rate ratio (PRR) by age in >64 years was 3.85 (95% CI 3.00 to 4.94), doubling that of women's PRR 1.78 (95% CI 1.57 to 2.01). In women, waist circumference and diabetes were stronger GSD factors; a higher number of children and worse metabolic and socioeconomic conditions were also highlighted. GSD men had higher cardiovascular disease and a family history of GSD and gallbladder cancer. 198 GSD cases developed during follow-up, with incidence increasing by 2% (95% CI 1.005% to 1.03%) per each centimetre above the ideal waist circumference, statistically significant only in women. In men, age was the strongest factor for incidence, followed by a family history of GSD and low high-density lipoprotein increased incidence risk.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>GSD burden was high in this population; a third of women had their gallbladder removed, which may pose them at risk of other health problems. Abdominal obesity was the only preventable GSD risk factor, highlighting the need for effective public health policies promoting obesity reduction.</p>","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11440185/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142341937","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Thomas E Ueland, Jonathan D Mosley, Christopher Neylan, John P Shelley, Jamie Robinson, Eric R Gamazon, Lillias Maguire, Richard Peek, Alexander T Hawkins
{"title":"Multiancestry transferability of a polygenic risk score for diverticulitis.","authors":"Thomas E Ueland, Jonathan D Mosley, Christopher Neylan, John P Shelley, Jamie Robinson, Eric R Gamazon, Lillias Maguire, Richard Peek, Alexander T Hawkins","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001474","DOIUrl":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001474","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Polygenic risk scores (PRS) for diverticular disease must be evaluated in diverse cohorts. We sought to explore shared genetic predisposition across the phenome and to assess risk stratification in individuals genetically similar to European, African and Admixed-American reference samples.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A 44-variant PRS was applied to the <i>All of Us</i> Research Program. Phenome-wide association studies (PheWAS) identified conditions linked with heightened genetic susceptibility to diverticular disease. To evaluate the PRS in risk stratification, logistic regression models for symptomatic and for severe diverticulitis were compared with base models with covariates of age, sex, body mass index, smoking and principal components. Performance was assessed using area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUROC) and Nagelkerke's R<sup>2</sup>.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The cohort comprised 181 719 individuals for PheWAS and 50 037 for risk modelling. PheWAS identified associations with diverticular disease, connective tissue disease and hernias. Across ancestry groups, one SD PRS increase was consistently associated with greater odds of severe (range of ORs (95% CI) 1.60 (1.27 to 2.02) to 1.86 (1.42 to 2.42)) and of symptomatic diverticulitis ((95% CI) 1.27 (1.10 to 1.46) to 1.66 (1.55 to 1.79)) relative to controls. European models achieved the highest AUROC and Nagelkerke's R<sup>2</sup> (AUROC (95% CI) 0.78 (0.75 to 0.81); R<sup>2</sup> 0.25). The PRS provided a maximum R<sup>2</sup> increase of 0.034 and modest AUROC improvement.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Associations between a diverticular disease PRS and severe presentations persisted in diverse cohorts when controlling for known risk factors. Relative improvements in model performance were observed, but absolute change magnitudes were modest.</p>","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11418579/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142307061","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Home-based EXercise and motivAtional programme before and after Liver Transplantation (EXALT): study protocol for phase II two-centre, randomised controlled trial.","authors":"","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001410","DOIUrl":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001410","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Physical frailty is associated with increased mortality and poor quality of life (QoL) before and after liver transplantation (LT). Evidence is lacking on how to tailor exercise and behavioural techniques in this patient population.</p><p><strong>Methods and analysis: </strong>Home-based EXercise and motivAtional programme before and after Liver Transplantation (EXALT) is a phase 2b, open-label, two-centre randomised controlled clinical trial designed to investigate whether a remotely monitored 'home-based exercise and theory-based motivation support programme (HBEP)' before and after LT improves QoL in LT recipients. Adult patients awaiting a primary LT will be assessed for eligibility at two LT centres (Birmingham, Royal Free London). Participants will be randomly assigned (1:1) to receive either an HBEP while on the LT waiting list through to 24 weeks after LT (Intervention) or a patient exercise advice leaflet (Control). Using a standard method of difference in means (two-sided significance level 0.05; power 0.90) and accounting for a 35% attrition/withdrawal rate, a minimum of 133 patients will be randomised to each treatment group. The primary outcome measure will be assessed using intention-to-treat analysis of the difference in the Physical Component Score of Short form-36 version 2.0 health-related QoL questionnaire between the groups at 24 weeks post-LT.</p><p><strong>Ethics and dissemination: </strong>The protocol was approved by the South Central-Hampshire A National Research Ethics Committee. Recruitment into the EXALT trial started in May 2022 and is due to end in June 2024, with 217/266 patients randomised to date. The intervention follow-up is due to finish in May 2026. The findings of this trial will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, conferences and social media.</p><p><strong>Trial registration number: </strong>ISRCTN13476586.</p>","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11407209/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142131891","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Serum amyloid A for predicting prognosis in patients with newly diagnosed Crohn’s disease","authors":"Qia Chen, Xi Zhang, Yizhe Tie, Jianwu Zhang, Pinwei Huang, Yuxuan Xie, Liqian Zhang, Xueer Tang, Zhirong Zeng, Li Li, Minhu Chen, Rirong Chen, Shenghong Zhang","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001497","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001497","url":null,"abstract":"Objective Serum amyloid A (SAA) was found to be positively correlated with the activity of Crohn’s disease (CD); however, its prognostic value remains uncertain. Here, we examined its predictive ability in newly diagnosed CD and explored genetic association. Methods This retrospective cohort study included patients newly diagnosed as CD at the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University between June 2010 and March 2022. We employed receiver operating characteristic curve, Cox proportional hazard regression models and restricted cubic splines to investigate the prognostic performance of SAA for surgery and disease progression. To assess possible causality, a two-sample Mendelian randomisation (MR) of published genome-wide association study data was conducted. Results During 2187.6 person-years (median age, 28 years, 72.4% male), 87 surgery and 153 disease progression events were documented. A 100-unit increment in SAA level generated 14% higher risk for surgery (adjusted HR (95% CI): 1.14 (1.05–1.23), p=0.001) and 12% for disease progression (1.12 (1.05–1.19), p<0.001). Baseline SAA level ≥89.2 mg/L led to significantly elevated risks for surgery (2.08 (1.31–3.28), p=0.002) and disease progression (1.72 (1.22–2.41), p=0.002). Such associations were assessed as linear. Adding SAA into a scheduled model significantly improved its predictive performances for surgery and disease progression (p for net reclassification indexes and integrated discrimination indexes <0.001). Unfortunately, no genetic causality between SAA and CD was observed in MR analysis. Sensitivity analyses showed robust results. Conclusion Although causality was not found, baseline SAA level was an independent predictor of surgery and disease progression in newly diagnosed CD, and had additive benefit to existing prediction models. Data are available upon reasonable request. The datasets generated for this study are available on request from the corresponding authors.","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"5 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142204475","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Patients’ and health professionals’ research priorities for chronic pain associated with inflammatory bowel disease: a co-produced sequential mixed methods Delphi consensus study","authors":"Morris Gordon, Vassiliki Sinopoulou, Roxana Mardare, Mansour Abdulshafea, Ciaran Grafton-Clarke, Jessica Vasiliou","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001483","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001483","url":null,"abstract":"Objective Chronic pain in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is common and detrimental to quality of life. Recent Cochrane reviews identified a multitude of randomised controlled trial interventions, but the certainty of the findings is low or very low. We set out to reach a patient and professional co-produced Delphi consensus on treatment priorities, key outcomes and propose a model for understanding our findings. Methods An online survey was co-produced with Crohn’s and Colitis UK and sent to patients and healthcare professionals in two phases, for prioritisation of treatments and outcome measures. Phase three consisted of four online group interviews, where patients and healthcare professionals discussed the rationale of their choices. Transcripts were combined with the free text data from the Delphi surveys and analysed through a three-phase qualitative technique. Results The phase 1 survey was completed by 128 participants (73 patients, 3 carers and 53 health professionals). Diet was the top priority for both patients (n=26/73, 36.1%) and healthcare professionals (n=29/52, 56.9%). Phase 2 was completed by 68 participants. FODMAP (fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols) diet, stress management therapy and relaxation therapy were the top three consensus priorities. Phase 3 group interviews were attended by 13 patients and 5 healthcare professionals. Key themes included: The patient as an individual, beliefs and experiences, disease activity influencing therapy choice, accessibility barriers and quality of life. Conclusion Low FODMAP diet, followed by psychological therapies were the highest-rated research priorities for healthcare professionals and patients. Funding bodies and researchers should consider these findings, alongside the model for understanding our findings, when making research decisions. Data are available upon reasonable request. We have tried to include all available data in the supplementary files, and we are happy to receive any reasonable requests for additional information.","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142204474","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Diagnostic application of the ColonFlag AI tool in combination with faecal immunochemical test in patients on an urgent lower gastrointestinal cancer pathway","authors":"Ruth M Ayling, Finbarr Cotter","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001372","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001372","url":null,"abstract":"Objective Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the fourth most common cancer in the UK. Patients with symptoms suggestive of CRC should be referred for urgent investigation. However, gastrointestinal symptoms are often non-specific and there is a need for suitable triage tools to enable prioritisation of investigations. In this study, the performance of the faecal immunochemical test (FIT), anaemia and the artificial intelligence algorithm ColonFlag were retrospectively examined and evaluated for their potential clinical benefits in patients who had been referred on an urgent lower gastrointestinal cancer pathway. Design All patients aged over 40 years referred in a 12-month period were included. After 6 months, clinical outcomes were determined and the performance of the triage tests was evaluated. Results A total of 3822 patients completed investigations and received a diagnosis. 143 had CRC, 126 high-risk adenomas (HRA). ColonFlag would have missed 27 CRC and 29 HRA. Faecal haemoglobin (f-Hb) at a cut-off of 10 µg/g would have missed 10 CRC and 26 HRA; f-Hb in combination with anaemia would have missed 2 CRC and 14 HRA. Using f-Hb in combination with ColonFlag would have missed only 1 CRC and 5 HRA and would have reduced the need for urgent referral by over 400 patients. Conclusion ColonFlag has potential to assist detection of CRC and HRA, alone where no faecal sample is present and in combination with FIT and to reduce the need for urgent referral. Data are available on reasonable request.","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.1,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142269129","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Bruno Bohn, Curtis Tilves, Yingan Chen, Myriam Doyon, Luigi Bouchard, Patrice Perron, Renée Guérin, Éric Massé, Marie-France Hivert, Noel T Mueller
{"title":"Associations of gut microbiota features and circulating metabolites with systemic inflammation in children.","authors":"Bruno Bohn, Curtis Tilves, Yingan Chen, Myriam Doyon, Luigi Bouchard, Patrice Perron, Renée Guérin, Éric Massé, Marie-France Hivert, Noel T Mueller","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001470","DOIUrl":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001470","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Gut microbes and microbe-dependent metabolites (eg, tryptophan-kynurenine-serotonin pathway metabolites) have been linked to systemic inflammation, but the microbiota-metabolite-inflammation axis remains uncharacterised in children. Here we investigated whether gut microbiota features and circulating metabolites (both microbe-dependent and non-microbe-dependent metabolites) associated with circulating inflammation markers in children.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We studied children from the prospective Gen3G birth cohort who had data on untargeted plasma metabolome (n=321 children; Metabolon platform), gut microbiota (n=147; 16S rRNA sequencing), and inflammation markers (plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, and tumour necrosis factor-α) measured at 5-7 years. We examined associations of microbial taxa and metabolites-examining microbe-dependent and non-microbe-dependent metabolites separately-with each inflammatory marker and with an overall inflammation score (InfSc), adjusting for key confounders and correcting for multiple comparisons. We also compared the proportion of significantly associated microbe-dependent versus non-microbe-dependent metabolites, identified a priori (Human Microbial Metabolome Database), with each inflammation marker.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of 335 taxa tested, 149 were associated (q<sub>FDR</sub><0.05) with at least one inflammatory marker; 10 of these were robust to pseudocount choice. Several bacterial taxa involved in tryptophan metabolism were associated with inflammation, including kynurenine-degrading <i>Ruminococcus</i>, which was inversely associated with all inflammation markers. Of 1037 metabolites tested, 315 were previously identified as microbe dependent and were more frequently associated with PAI-1 and the InfSc than non-microbe dependent metabolites. In total, 87 metabolites were associated (q<sub>FDR</sub><0.05) with at least one inflammation marker, including kynurenine (positively), serotonin (positively), and tryptophan (inversely).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>A distinct set of gut microbes and microbe-dependent metabolites, including those involved in the tryptophan-kynurenine-serotonin pathway, may be implicated in inflammatory pathways in childhood.</p>","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11367355/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142104494","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Daniele Napolitano, Ercole Vellone, Paolo Iovino, Franco Scaldaferri, Antonello Cocchieri
{"title":"Self-care in patients affected by inflammatory bowel disease and caregiver contribution to self-care (IBD-SELF): a protocol for a longitudinal observational study.","authors":"Daniele Napolitano, Ercole Vellone, Paolo Iovino, Franco Scaldaferri, Antonello Cocchieri","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001510","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001510","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Supporting patient self-care and the contribution of their caregivers is crucial in chronic illness care. Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic condition whose prevalence is expected to double, especially in Western countries. IBD symptoms can negatively impact patients' well-being, causing high anxiety, depression, stress and reduced quality of life. These symptoms also affect the health of family members and friends, who often take on caregiving roles during exacerbations. Knowledge about self-care in IBD (IBD-SELF) is limited, and few studies have explored this context. This paper outlines a research protocol for a multicentre longitudinal study to investigate patient self-care and caregiver contributions to IBD-SELF.</p><p><strong>Methods and analysis: </strong>A sample of 250 consecutive patients diagnosed with IBD and their caregivers will be recruited from 9 dedicated IBD units in northern, central and southern Italy during outpatient visits. Data collection will occur at baseline, 6 and 12 months after enrolment. Multivariable regressions, path analyses and structural equation models will identify predictors (eg, health literacy, caregiver burden and depression) and outcomes (use of healthcare services, disease severity and quality of life) of self-care and caregiver contributions. Dyadic analyses will control for the interdependence of dyad members.</p><p><strong>Ethics and dissemination: </strong>Ethical approval was obtained from the Territorial Ethics Committee (Lazio 3) N. 0023486/23 and registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (Identifier number: NCT06015789). This study will enhance our understanding of the self-care process in the patient-caregiver dyad in IBD, aiding the design of future educational interventions and promoting greater patient and caregiver involvement in the care pathway.</p><p><strong>Trial registration number: </strong>ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT06015789.</p>","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142104498","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Dena Bravata, Hau Liu, Meghan M Colosimo, Alexander C Bullock, Erin Commons, Mark Pimentel
{"title":"Digital disease management programme reduces chronic gastrointestinal symptoms among racially and socially vulnerable populations.","authors":"Dena Bravata, Hau Liu, Meghan M Colosimo, Alexander C Bullock, Erin Commons, Mark Pimentel","doi":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001463","DOIUrl":"10.1136/bmjgast-2024-001463","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Considerable disparities exist in access to gastrointestinal (GI) care and digestive outcomes across gender, racial, and socioeconomic groups. We evaluated (1) whether adults with chronic GI symptoms from diverse demographic groups would use a digital digestive care programme and (2) the effects of participation on GI symptom severity and other patient-reported outcomes.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Access to a digital digestive chronic care programme was provided to participants regardless of prior digestive diagnoses or symptoms for 90 days. The intervention included GI symptom tracking, personalised medical nutrition therapy, GI-specific health coaching, and targeted education on common GI symptoms. We assigned a Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) score to each participant according to their home address and compared baseline and end-intervention symptoms and other patient-reported outcomes by gender, race/ethnicity, and SVI.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of the 1936 participants, mean age was 43.1 years; 67% identified as white/Caucasian, 11% Asian/Pacific Islander, 6% Hispanic/Latinx, 7% black/African American, and 7% of multiple races. Participants of all demographic groups used the app symptom logging, reviewed educational materials, and interacted with their care team and reported similar statistically significant improvements in GI symptoms (by the end of the intervention, 85% improved, p<0.05). Participants reported feeling greater control of their health (83%), better able to manage their digestive symptoms (83%), increased happiness (76%), and greater productivity at work (54%), with black/African Americans and Native Americans most likely to report these changes.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>We conclude that a digital GI disease management programme may be of value in reducing disparities in access to GI care.</p>","PeriodicalId":9235,"journal":{"name":"BMJ Open Gastroenterology","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2024-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11367377/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142104495","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}