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Gastroenterology & Hepatology Apr 2023Mesenteric panniculitis (MP) is a benign condition characterized by chronic inflammation and fibrosis of adipose tissue mainly of the small bowel mesentery. MP is...
Mesenteric panniculitis (MP) is a benign condition characterized by chronic inflammation and fibrosis of adipose tissue mainly of the small bowel mesentery. MP is commonly detected incidentally on cross-sectional imaging of the abdomen and can be asymptomatic in up to nearly half of patients. The most frequent clinical symptom reported is abdominal pain, followed by bloating/distention, diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, anorexia, weight loss, fever, malaise, and nausea. On computed tomography, MP is seen as a mass-like area of increased fat attenuation within the small bowel mesentery, usually located in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen. This mass-like area envelops mesenteric vessels and displaces adjacent bowel segments. Lymph nodes are frequently seen within the area of mesenteric abnormality. One of the most common differential diagnoses of MP is lymphoma, and positron emission tomography/computed tomography may be performed if there is suspicion of a concurrent underlying malignancy. Because of the benign nature of MP, treatment decisions should be guided by severity of symptoms and presence of complications. First-line medical treatment is prednisone and tamoxifen. Surgery is reserved for cases of recurrent bowel obstruction. This article provides a review of MP, including its epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, imaging findings, and treatment.
PubMed: 37705847
DOI: No ID Found -
Nature Communications Jan 2024A subgroup of patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 remain symptomatic over three months after infection. A distinctive symptom of patients with long COVID is...
A subgroup of patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 remain symptomatic over three months after infection. A distinctive symptom of patients with long COVID is post-exertional malaise, which is associated with a worsening of fatigue- and pain-related symptoms after acute mental or physical exercise, but its underlying pathophysiology is unclear. With this longitudinal case-control study (NCT05225688), we provide new insights into the pathophysiology of post-exertional malaise in patients with long COVID. We show that skeletal muscle structure is associated with a lower exercise capacity in patients, and local and systemic metabolic disturbances, severe exercise-induced myopathy and tissue infiltration of amyloid-containing deposits in skeletal muscles of patients with long COVID worsen after induction of post-exertional malaise. This study highlights novel pathways that help to understand the pathophysiology of post-exertional malaise in patients suffering from long COVID and other post-infectious diseases.
Topics: Humans; Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome; SARS-CoV-2; Case-Control Studies; COVID-19; Fatigue; Musculoskeletal Abnormalities; Muscle, Skeletal; Pain; Plaque, Amyloid
PubMed: 38177128
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44432-3 -
Cell Metabolism Feb 2020Growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF15) is a cytokine that reduces food intake through activation of hindbrain GFRAL-RET receptors and has become a keen target of...
Growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF15) is a cytokine that reduces food intake through activation of hindbrain GFRAL-RET receptors and has become a keen target of interest for anti-obesity therapies. Elevated endogenous GDF15 is associated with energy balance disturbances, cancer progression, chemotherapy-induced anorexia, and morning sickness. We hypothesized that GDF15 causes emesis and that its anorectic effects are related to this function. Here, we examined feeding and emesis and/or emetic-like behaviors in three different mammalian laboratory species to help elucidate the role of GDF15 in these behaviors. Data show that GDF15 causes emesis in Suncus murinus (musk shrews) and induces behaviors indicative of nausea/malaise (e.g., anorexia and pica) in non-emetic species, including mice and lean or obese rats. We also present data in mice suggesting that GDF15 contributes to chemotherapy-induced malaise. Together, these results indicate that GDF15 triggers anorexia through the induction of nausea and/or by engaging emetic neurocircuitry.
Topics: Animals; Anorexia; Body Weight; Female; Growth Differentiation Factor 15; Humans; Hypoglycemic Agents; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Nausea; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Recombinant Proteins; Shrews; Vomiting
PubMed: 31928886
DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2019.12.004 -
Chronic Fatigue and Postexertional Malaise in People Living With Long COVID: An Observational Study.Physical Therapy Apr 2022People living with long COVID describe a high symptom burden, and a more detailed assessment is needed to inform rehabilitation recommendations. The objectives were to... (Observational Study)
Observational Study
OBJECTIVE
People living with long COVID describe a high symptom burden, and a more detailed assessment is needed to inform rehabilitation recommendations. The objectives were to use validated questionnaires to measure the severity of fatigue and compare this with normative data and thresholds for clinical relevance in other diseases; measure and describe the impact of postexertional malaise (PEM); and assess symptoms of dysfunctional breathing, self-reported physical activity, and health-related quality of life.
METHODS
This was an observational study with a cross-sectional survey design (data collection from February 2021 to April 2021). Eligible participants were adults experiencing persistent symptoms due to COVID-19 that did not predate the confirmed or suspected infection. Questionnaires included the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue Scale and the DePaul Symptom Questionnaire-Post-Exertional Malaise.
RESULTS
After data cleaning, 213 participants were included in the analysis. The total Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue Scale score was 18 (SD = 10) (where the score can range from 0 to 52, and a lower score indicates more severe fatigue), and 71.4% were experiencing chronic fatigue. Postexertional symptom exacerbation affected most participants, and 58.7% met the PEM scoring thresholds used in people living with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.
CONCLUSION
Long COVID is characterized by chronic fatigue that is clinically relevant and at least as severe as fatigue in several other clinical conditions. PEM is a significant challenge for this patient group. Because of the potential for setbacks and deteriorated function following overexertion, fatigue and postexertional symptom exacerbation must be monitored and reported in clinical practice and in studies involving interventions for people with long COVID.
IMPACT
Physical therapists working with people with long COVID should measure and validate the patient's experience. Postexertional symptom exacerbation must be considered, and rehabilitation needs to be carefully designed based on individual presentation. Beneficial interventions might first ensure symptom stabilization via pacing, a self-management strategy for the activity that helps minimize postexertional malaise.
Topics: Adult; COVID-19; Cross-Sectional Studies; Fatigue Syndrome, Chronic; Humans; Quality of Life; Symptom Flare Up; Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome
PubMed: 35079817
DOI: 10.1093/ptj/pzac005