Gastroenterology and Hepatology Clinical Research Update: 2005–2006

This review highlights areas of clinical research in gastroenterology and hepatology that were published predominantly in the journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology during the last year and were summarized during the American Gastroenterological Association Presidential Plenary Session in May 2006. The topics included eosinophilic esophagitis in children, detecting high-grade dysplasia or carcinoma in Barrett’s esophagus, advances in management of celiac disease with elemental diet or gluten predigestion, the safety of NSAIDs in inflammatory bowel disease, the role of steroids in development of abscesses, prognosis of colorectal cancer associated with inflammatory bowel disease, screening for familial colorectal cancer in apparently sporadic disease, a new syndrome of familial colorectal cancer, new drugs in the treatment of chronic constipation and obesity, hepatoma risk factors and underserved racial/ethnic groups, and the application of new imaging and biology in diagnosis of gastroenterological disorders.

Abbreviations used in this paper: CB, cannabinoid, COX, cyclooxygenase, ERC, endoscopic retrograde cholangiography, FDA, Food and Drug Administration, HCC, hepatocellular carcinoma, HDL, high-density lipoprotein, HNPCC, hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer, MRC, magnetic resonance cholangiography, MRI, magnetic resonance imaging, MMR, mismatch repair, MSI, microsatellite instability, PSC, primary sclerosing cholangitis.