Google
English
French
German
Italian
Japanese
Portuguese
SpanishTrusted Resources: Education
Scientific literature and patient education texts
Amyloidosis of the Gastrointestinal Tract and the Liver: Clinical Context, Diagnosis and Management
source: European Journal of Gastroenterology & Hepatology
year: 2016
authors: Syed U, Ching Companioni RA, Alkhawam H, Walfish A
summary/abstract:Amyloidosis is a group of disorders that can manifest in virtually any organ system in the body and is thought to be secondary to misfolding of extracellular proteins with subsequent deposition in tissues. The precursor protein that is produced in excess defines the specific amyloid type. This requires histopathological confirmation using Congo red dye with its characteristic demonstration of green birefringence under cross-polarized light.
Gastrointestinal (GI) manifestations are common and the degree of organ involvement dictates the symptoms that a patient will experience. The small intestine usually has the most amyloid deposition within the GI tract. Patients generally have nonspecific findings such as abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea, and dysphagia that can often delay the proper diagnosis. Liver involvement is seen in a majority of patients, although symptoms typically are not appreciated unless there is significant hepatic amyloid deposition. Pancreatic involvement is usually from local amyloid deposition that can lead to type 2 diabetes mellitus.
In addition, patients may undergo either endoscopic or radiological evaluation; however, these findings are usually nonspecific. Management of GI amyloidosis primarily aims to treat the underlying amyloid type with supportive measures to alleviate specific GI symptoms. Liver transplant is found to have positive outcomes, especially in patients with specific variants of hereditary amyloidosis.
organization: Elmhurst Hospital Center, USADOI: 10.1097/MEG.0000000000000695
read more
myBinderRelated Content
-
Amyloidosis: Follow-Up CareAfter treatment for amyloidosis ends, ta...
-
Cardiac Amyloidosis: An Updated Review With Emphasis on Diagnosis and Future DirectionsCardiac amyloidosis occurs because of ab...
-
Evolutive Echocardiographic Changes in Cardiac Amyloidosis: Look at the Whole PictureDoppler echocardiogram provides not only...
-
Familial Amyloid PolyneuropathyAmyloidosis is a rare disease caused by ...
-
Renal amyloidosisAmyloidosis is a rare disease caused by ...
-
FDA Approves Patisiran Infusion for Hereditary Transthyretin-Mediated AmyloidosisThe FDA announced that it has approved p...
-
FDA Approves Subcutaneous Daratumumab Plus VCd for Newly Diagnosed Light-Chain AmyloidosisThe FDA has approved daratumumab and h...
To improve your experience on this site, we use cookies. This includes cookies essential for the basic functioning of our website, cookies for analytics purposes, and cookies enabling us to personalize site content. By clicking on 'Accept' or any content on this site, you agree that cookies can be placed. You may adjust your browser's cookie settings to suit your preferences.
More information
The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.
