Page 28 - Christiana Care Focus January 2018

GI symposium explores latest treatments
for disorders of the digestive system
“As gastroenterologists, we deal with a whole host of medical conditions, and it’s important that we stay up-to-date for ourselves and our patients.”
Warren Butt, M.D.
EVENTS
The inaugural GI symposium Update in Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases, Oct. 7, brought together national and regional leaders in gastroenterology to discuss the
latest treatments for disorders of the digestive system, including Crohn’s disease, inflammatory bowel disease and symptoms of constipation.
“As gastroenterologists, we deal with a whole host of medical conditions, and it’s important that we stay up-to-date for ourselves and our patients,” said Warren Butt, M.D., one of the lead organizers of the event, which was cosponsored by Christiana Care and the Delaware Center for Digestive Care, partners in Delaware GI care.
Within Delaware, there has been enormous progress in the identification and treatment of GI disorders, and the symposium is a method for sharing these accomplishments with the broader medical community while outlining the challenges that remain, Dr. Butt said.
The event attracted nearly 100 clinicians, scientists and allied health professionals for a lively series of presentations at the John H. Ammon Medical Education Center.
Among those addressing procedures now available in Delaware was Wilmington-area gastroenterologist Sarina Pasricha, M.D., MSCR, who shared her expertise on methods for treating constipation.
While statistics on constipation vary, Dr. Pasricha’s research suggests 22 percent of the population seek medical care
for constipation, a condition that affects about 42 million Americans, according to the U.S. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). Dr. Pasricha said that this number is likely lower than expected because many patients are privately struggling with this personal issue.
“Constipation can be a debilitating disease process that significantly affects a patient’s quality of life, causing him or her to be uncomfortable and potentially even missing work,” she said. “I encourage patients suffering with constipation to talk about it with their health care providers, because we do have medications and treatment options to help.”
She highlighted an advanced procedure — anorectal manom- etry — that goes beyond a simple physical exam, making it possible for a clinician to more accurately identify the cause of constipation. Anorectal manometry, which requires specialized training, utilizes a balloon-attached catheter to measure internal sensations and identify whether muscles, tissues and nerves in the pelvis are performing as they should, so the specific causes of constipation can be addressed in physical therapy.
“A patient with an abnormal anorectal manometry test can ben- efit from being referred to a physical therapist for biofeedback for muscles that support the pelvic region,” said Dr. Pasricha. “Research studies have shown that this type of biofeedback
can improve colon function and provide symptomatic relief of constipation. By offering this advanced test, we can provide our patients with the best diagnostic and treatment options.”
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Another topic discussed was the long-term safety of proton pump inhibitors, which have been linked in news articles with poor mineral absorption, Clostridium difficile bacterial infections and dementia.
National experts Philip Katz, M.D., director of motility at the Weill Cornell Medicine Laboratories and past president of the American College of Gastroenterology, and David Metz, M.D.,
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