Gastroenterology Flashcards
- What is this?
- What is the geographical distribution, who is at risk?
- i.e. who would you consider screening?
- Entamoeba histolytica or E. dispar
- E. dispar is 4 times as common as E. histolytica but non-pathogenic
- worldwide
- situations of poor hygeine and sanitation, common in developing countries
- immigrants
- travellers
- residential institutions
- men having sex with men
- immunosuppressed
What non-pathogenic protozoa reside in human intestine and the cysts of which of these can be confused with those of E. hystolitica?
- Entamoeba dispar: 3 times as common as E. histolytica in developing countries, 10 times as common in industrialized countries
- Entameba moshkovskii (cysts identical to E. dispar and E. histolytica)
- Entameba coli, Entameba hartmanni and Endolimax nana
- What disease causing ameba are found in humans?
- E. hystolytica
- E. gingivalis (periodontal disease)
- E. polecki and Dientameba fragilis (diarrhea)
- Acanthameba sp and Balamuthia mandrillaris (acanthamebic keratitis/granulomatous amebic encephalitis)
- Naegleria fowleri (primary amebic meningoencephalitis)
- What 3 entamoebi look identical?
- Which cause disease?
- How are they distinguished?
- E. histolytica - pathological
- E. moshkovski - possibly pathological, some recorded cases associated with GI symptoms
- Not causing disease:
- E. dispar
- Microscopically identical. Need PCR to distinguish.
What are the 7 species of human entameba?
- E. histolytica
- E. dispar
- E. polecki
- E. moshkovskii
- E. gingivalis
- E. coli
- E. hartmanni
- Draw E. histolytica trophozoite and cyst.
- What are distinguishing characteristics?
- Trophozoites
- size 15-60 microns
- nucleus with karyosome and peripheral chromatin
- may see ingested RBC’s (about 5 microns)
- pseudopod
- Cysts
- 10-15 micron diameter
- immature cysts
- may have < 4 nuclei
- glycogen mass
- chromatoidal body
- Nuclei
- 4 nuclei when mature (also in E. dispar)
- E. coli non-pathogenic, has up to 8 nuclei
- have numerous pores, lined with peripheral chromatin
- What is E. dispar and why is it important?
- morphologically identical to E. histolytica but non-pathogenic
- much more common than E. histolytica
- distinct on basis of genetic and biochemical differences
- What is the incubation period for intestinal amebiasis?
- may range from few days to many years depending on size of the inoculum and host response
- can have prolonged latent period and may present more than a decade following exposure
- Which patients are at risk for more severe clinical course of amebiasis?
- neonates
- children
- pregnancy
- elderly
- immunosuppressed
- alcoholics
- malnourishment
What factors affect the severity of amebiasis?
- strain of E. hystolytica
- dose of inoculum
- status of patient’s immune system
- Is intestinal amebiasis a zoonosis? Explain.
- principally an infection of humans
- (some monkeys may harbour the parasite)
- What is the ‘bind-lyse-eat’ model for invasive amebiasis?
- E. histolytica binds to host intestine by means of galactose-binding lectin
- amoebapores (pore forming molecules) and other enzymes trigger cell apoptosis
- ameba phagocytoses the dead cell leading to development of undermined mucosal ulcers with typical “flask-shaped”ulcers.
- However, invasion also appears to involve cytoskeleton motility, secretion of proteases that degrade extracellular matrix and antibodies. Host inflammatory response also important
- Describe the pathogenesis of amebic dysentery
- four-nucleated cyst ingested in contaminated food or water
- cyst digested in gut releasing eight amoebic trophozoites
- trophozoites live on surface of mucosa, feeding on bacteria and other food residues
- multiply be binary fission
- become invasive bind-lyze-eat their way into mucosa
- gradually ascend the colon and as contents of colon become more solid, amebae stop feeding and encyst
- amebic cysts are passed in formed stool of people with asymptomatic amebiasis
- Can E. histolytica cysts survive outside body?
- If so under what conditions and for how long?
- yes under permissive conditions
- more than 12 days in cool feces and several weeks in water
- killed by
- drying at temps above 50oC and
- freezing below -5oC
- standard treatment of water supplies
Can humans develop immunity to E. histolytica?
- some evidence of mucosal immunity to recurrent infections
- protective immunity does not follow amebic liver abscess
What are the clinical features of intestinal amebiasis?
- wide range from
- majority of infections asymptomatic through
- mild disease to
- fulminant amebic colitis
- onset may be precipitated by another gi infection or other illness, debility or immunosuppression
- sx usually insidious with
- abd discomfort
- loose stools sometimes containing mucous and blood
- Mild to moderate
- pts may be afebrile and ambulatory despite 5-15 bloody stools per day
- Severe disease
- debilitated or immunosuppressed pts more likely to have rapid onset abd pain, vomiting, dysuria, tenesmus and frequent bloody stools
- may be febrile, toxic, dehydrated, anemic, with evidence of peritonitis
- Most extreme: fulminant necrotizing colitis in minority, usually immunosuppressed
- often fatal
- How do you make diagnosis of amebic dysentery? What studies?
- stool exam & endoscopy
- mild disease may reveal scanty trophozoites in feces, few ulcers on endoscopy
- moderate disease may have mumerous trophozoites, obvious rectal ulceration on endoscopy
- severe disease in immunosuppressed patients: COLONOSCOPY CONTRAINDICATED for fear of bowel perforation
- microscopy
- MUST SEE trophozoites containing ingested RBC’s in fresh stool
- ideally examined within 15 min of passing stool or kept at body temp until examined
- trophozoites may also be seen in scrapings of ulcers at endoscopy
- leukocytes usually scanty (opposite of bacillary dysentery)
- E. hist copro-Ag test
- What are potential complications of amebiasis?
- amebic abscess, most commonly liver
- ameboma
- chronic inflammatory mass or masses, most commonly ileocecal presenting as acute/subacute obstruction or causing an intussusception
- hemorrhage causing anemia or shock
- peritonitis
- abrupt/insidious onset, may occur after pt has started treatment
- post-dysenteric ulcerative colitis
- usually resolves without treatment
- rarely progresses to massive necrosis and toxic megacolon
- skin ulceration
- usually perinal and anogenital, may occur e.g. ileostomy/colostomy sites, surgical wounds
- stricture
- esp of colon and rectum
- What is the differential diagnosis of amebic colitis?
- shigella
- typhoid or other salmonella
- enteroinvasive and enterohemorrhagic escherischia coli
- schistosomiasis (esp. S. mansoni and S. japonicum)
- Balantidium coli
- trichuris trichiuria
- tb
- ca
- ischemic colitis
- av malformation
- diverticulitis
- Any other cause of acute or chronic abd pain
- Other causes of dysentery or bloody stools
What is the differential diagnosis of ameboma?
- tb
- ca
- actinomycosis
- antibioma
- appendiceal mass
How do amebic liver abscesses form?
- trophozoites invade liver via portal vein and destroy hepatocytes
- microabscesses form and coalesce to form
- single abscess (65-75%)
- multiple abscesses (25-35%)
- surrounding tissue becomes edematous and enflamed
- secondary bacterial infection unusual
Where do liver abscess form?
- right lobe abscesses 4 times more common than left
Who gets amebic liver abscesses?
- Men 10 times as common as women
- all age groups from neonates to elderly BUT
- ALA most common in males aged 20-40 yrs
- < 50% have hx of dysentery within 1 month prior to presentation
- many have no hx of dysentery at all
- may present many years after expsure with transition from latent infection to clinical disease triggered by illness or immune suppression
What are the clinical features of amebic liver abscess?
- “amebic hepatitis”
- in early precoalescence phase may present with low grade fever, ruq discomfort and tenderness
- however, AST, ALT, GGT, bili usually normal
- “mature” abscess
- gradually increasing, sometimes acute pain RUQ
- sometimes referred pain to shoulder
- pain may be pleuritic, localize to lower chest wall
- fever, sweats, rigor common
- maybe cough, SOB, evidence of pleural effusion leading to wrong dx pneumonia
- weight loss, wasting, anemia more frequent in chronic picture, may be afebrile
- most have tender hepatomegaly, tender ic space (Durban’s sign)
- CXR may show raised hemidiaphragm or pleural effusion
- jaundice uncommon, <1/2 have elevated transaminases or bili
- Most have increase alk phos
- neutrophil leucocytosis in ~80%
What are the complications of amebic liver abscess?
- rupture through
- skin
- peritoneum
- lung
- pleura
- pericardium and poss cardiac tamponade (esp with left lobe abscess)
- hematogenous seeding causing abscesses anywhere, e.g.
- brain
- muscle
- kidney
- spleen
What is the differential diagnosis of amebic liver abscess?
- pyogenic abscess
- hepatocellular ca
- liver mets
- hydatid cyst
- hepatitis
- tb
- syphilitic gumma
- lung pathology
How do you distinguish pathogenic and non-pathogenic amebic trophozoites by microscopy?
- non-pathogenic amebae do not contain ingested RBC’s
How do you confirm the dx of amebic liver abscess (ALA)?
- Primarily clinical diagnosis, with imaging findings
- CXR, US, CT
- rare to have trophozoites in stool
- less than half have cysts
- Abscess aspiration
- pink to dark brown, darkens on exposure to air
- “Anchovy sauce”
- Microscopy
- trophozoites can be seen in pus
- more reliably trophozoites can be seen in scrapings from the wall of an ALA
- cysts never found in abscesses
- leukocytes scanty unless 2o infection
- Antigen detection more sensitive
What are the 4 different technologies for detection of E. histolytica and what about them?
- microscopy
- in resource-poor settings, remains principal method of investigation
- stool ag detection more sensitive and specific, in affluent countries
- reliably differentiates E. histolytica from E. dispar but does not guarantee that E. histolytica is cause of sx
- Ag detectable in pus from abscess
- PCR recent
- serology
- Enzyme immunoassay (EIA) most widely recommended
- Ab in 95% of extraintestinal disease and 70% of active intestinal disease
- EIA becomes neg 6-12 months after recovery
- EIA may be neg in early stages of amebic liver abscess and should be repeated after a week if necessary
What is the role of endoscopy in dx of intestinal amebiasis?
- may be helpful if suspected but microscopy or ag tests neg
- no bowel prep: reduces yield
- amebic colitis looks like ulcerative colitis
- may invade other pathology e.g. carcinoma
- scrapings or biopsies from ulcer edge should be examined immediately for erythrophagocytic trophozoites
- What is the role of serology in confirming Amebic liver abscess?
- current serology screening tests do not differentiate current from past infections. Therefore not useful in endemic area
- Indirect Hemagluttanin Assay (IHA)
- Fluorescent Ab (sometimes for screening)
- Gel diffusion (for invasive disease)
- Cellulose Acetate Precipitin (CAP) very specific
- ELISA (very specific)
- What is the General Basic Approach to dx of Intestinal Amebiasis?
- stool trophs (hematophagocytic)
- stool Ag
- endoscopy
- serology
- What is the General Basic approach to diagnosis of amebic liver abscess (ALA)?
- Imaging: US/CXR/CT
- Serology
- How do you treat Intestinal Amebiasis?
-
Imidazoles: for tissue cure:
- Metranidazole 800 mg tid x 5-10 days
- Tinidazole
-
Luminal amebacides: for cyst eradication
- Diloxanide furoate
- Quinfamide
-
Other drugs:
- Nitazoxanide
-
Luminal
- Tetracycline
- Paromomycin
- Iodoquinol
- How do you treat ALA?
- Imidazoles
- Metronidazole
- Tinidazole
- Other:
- Nitazoxanide
- Aspiration only if impending rupture/failed conservative treatment
- What is the usual clinical presentation of Giardiasis?
- mostly assymptomatic, very variable
- anorexia, nausea, lassitude, “eggy” tast
- chronic diarrhea, cramps, bloating, nausea, wt loss, FTT
- severe diarrhea + malabsorption (usually if low immunity)
- How do you make diagnosis of Giardia?
- cysts in stool
- string (antiquated)
- aspirate
- Crosby Capsule (for upper small bowel biopsy)
- antiquated largely replaced by upper gi endoscopy except rarely in kids
- endoscopy
- stool antigen detection
- How do you treat Giardia? (Basic)
- First Line: imidazoles
- metronidazole
- tinidazole
- Reserve:
- quinacrine, mepacrine
- furazolidine
- paromomycin
- albendazole
- nitazoxanide
- How do you approach refractory Giardia?
- Treatment?
- Causal considerations
- adherence?
- any pets? i.e. reinfection
- IgA deficiency?
- consider treating whole family
- consider possible resistance
- Combination treatment
- Albendazole x 7 days + Tinidazole on Day 1 & Day 7
- if persistent try Mepacrine 100 mg tid x 7 days
- other combinations include
- albendazole + metronidazole
- quinacrine + metronidazole
- albendazole + nitazoxanide
- What is the proposed Liverpool treatment ladder for resistant Giardia?
- 1st line: Tinidazole - 2 gm stat
- 2nd line: Tinidazole - 2 gm stat
- Albendazole 400 mg bid x 7 days
- 3rd line: Tinidazole - 2 gm stat
- Albendazole 400 mg bid x 7 days
- mepacrine 100 mg tid x 7 days
- What is this?
- In what clinical settings is this found?
- Cryptosporidium cysts
- People who swim regularly in pools with insufficient sanitation (certain strains of Cryptosporidium are chlorine-resistant)
- Child-care workers
- Parents of infected children
- People caring for other people with cryptosporidiosis
- Backpackers, hikers, and campers who drink unfiltered, untreated water
- People, including swimmers, who swallow water from contaminated sources
- People handling infected cattle
- People exposed to human feces
- may chronically sicken immunocompromised
What are the symptoms/clinical picture of cryptosporidium infections?
- watery diarrhea, cramps, gas, wt loss, fever, malaise
- usually self limiting
- chronic/fulminant in immunocompromised (eg HIV)
- What is this?
- How is the diagnosis made?
- microscopic appearance?
- size?
- cryptosporidium parvum
- acid fast oocysts in stool by ZN stain
- stain bright red to pink, some dark granules, central clearing
- small 3-6 µm diameter
How do you treat cryptosporidium?
- symptomatic (e.g. ORS) as it is usually self-limiting, mild
- ?paromomycin, ?Azithromycin
- Nitazonoxanide
What is this?
What organism does it need to be distinguished from?
How?
clinical setting, where found?
- Cyclospora
- distinguish from cryptosporidium, which looks similare and stains similarly on ZN stain. (ZN cyclospora below)
- But cyclospora is LARGER - 8-10 µm vs 4-5 µm
- found mostly in contaminated water, fruit, herbs
Cyclospora: clinical picture
- similar to cryptosporidium and Isospora
- prolonged watery diarrhea, cramps, fever, fatigue
Cyclospora: how diagnosed?
- Stool microscopy: modified acid-fast stain
Isosporiasis:
- Species
- geographic dystribution
- human disease
- microscopy
- Isospora (cystoispora) belli
- worldwide, but generally from tropics & subtropics
- causes watery diarrhhea and wt loss, malabsorption, usually self-limited but
- immunocompromised at risk for debilitating and chronic illness
- disease via ingestion of mature oocysts, which must sporulate outside the host for 1-2 days
- acquired by ingestion of contaminated food or water
- dx by finding Isospora oocysts (dimensions, 23–36 µm by 12–17 µm)
Isosporiasis: pathological and clinical picture?
- similar to cryptosporidium
- watery diarrhea +/- blood +/- pus, pain, malabsorption
- self-limiting
- chronic/relapsing in immunocompromised
Isosporiasis: how is the diagnosis made?
- Stool, modified acid-fast stain
- nb may cause eosinophilia, the only one of GI parasites commonly doing this
Cyclospora/Isospora: How treated?
- TMP-SMX (160/800 mg po bid x 7-10 days)
- then maintenance 3 doses/week if HIV +ve or
- fansidar weekly
- then maintenance 3 doses/week if HIV +ve or
OR
- Pyrimethamin alone if sulphonamide allergic
- cipro for cyclospora
- Nitazoxanide
Microsporidia: what is the clinical significance?
- various species pathogenic in humans
- increasingly recognized as important, esp HIV-infected persons
What is the commonest microsporidium in a clinical setting?
- Enterocytozoon bieneusi
- occurs in 7-50% of HIV-infected persons with chronic diarrhea
Microsporidia: how identified?
- Stool microscopy: Weber’s chromotrope or chemofluorescent stain.
Microsporidia, how treated?
- Albendazole, Nitazoxanide
What are the causes of malabsorption in the tropics?
- Parasites:
- giardiasis
- fasciolopsis
- capillariasis
- stongyloidiasis
- isosporiasis
- cryptosporidiosis
- Tropical sprue
- Celiac disease
- Hypolactasia
- chronic calcific pancreatitis
- malnutrition
- Intestinal TB
- alpha-chain disease (variant of heavy chain disease, lymphoproliferative)
- What are the four groups or species of Shigella, how many suptypes and what are the clinical settings they are found in?
- Group A: Shigella dysenteriae
- tends to cause epidemics, (esp subtype 1)
- no major outbreaks since 1990
- 15 serotypes
- Group B: Sh. flexneri
- commonly causes endemic dysentery in developing countries
- however nb outbreak in England & Wales with MSM sex (cell phone sex, chemsex, fisting etc.)
- 8 serotypes with 15 subtypes
- Group C: Sh. boydii
- common on Indian subcontinent
- 120 serotypes
- Group D: Sh. Sonnei
- important cause of dysentery in industrialized world
- 1 serotype
Which strains of shigella have been described as sexually transmitted?
- MSM sex
- Sh. flexnerii
- Sh. sonnei
- How many deaths globally in 2015 in chilren under 5 from Diarrhea?
- What organisms are the most common causes?
- about 500,000 deaths
- rotavirus
- Cryptosporidium spp
- Shigella spp
What organisms cause the most deaths due to diarrhea globally (any age) in the total population?
- rotavirus
- shigella
- salmonella
What role does shigella play in diarrheal disease in children <5 in Asia and Africa?
(GEMS study)
- commonest cause of dysentery
- 2nd most common cause of watery diarrhea (after rotavirus)
- What is best treatment for shigella dysentery and ETEC?
- Against what antibiotics are shigella frequently resistant?
- Best: cipro or norfloxacin (little resistance until recently, emergence of cipro resistance in SE Asia & India)
- azithromycin
- TMP-SMX (80% Shigella resistant, 40% ETEC
- Tetracyline
- Ampicillin
How common is cholera?
- globally 3-5 million cases
- 100-120 thousand deaths annually
- however, may represent only 10% of all cases!
Cholera: What are the only animal hosts/reservoirs of infection?
- Man
- shellfish and plankton
What is the incubation period for cholera?
- few hours to 5 days
- most 12-24 hours
- Cholera Epidemiology
- what is the reservoir?
- how does it enter the human population?
- warm brackish water favour growth of plankton and V. cholerae and expression of virulence, taken up by copepods and crustaceans
- consumed via uncooked shellfish and enters human population, thereafter transferred via fecal-oral route and spreads via contaminated food or water
- Cholera Bacteriology
- Basic description
- implications for diagnosis
- comma shaped
- aerobic
- Gram negative
- Disease-causing cholera are divided into strains based on O antigen: (O1 and 0139)
- classically 01 strain was predominant, recent emergence of 0139 poses issues for effectiveness of vaccines
- 01 Strain divided into Biotypes El Tor & Classical and these into
- Serotypes Inaba and Ogawa, each of which may or may not produce toxin
- Therefore diagnosis requires identification of strain and identification of toxin antigen
Cholera: How well does it survive outside host?
- survives saline at low temp ~ 60 days, 12 days at ambient temp
- killed by heating at 55oC for 15 min
- killed by hypochlorite etc
What is Vibrio Cholera 0139 and what is it’s significance?
- a new strain appeared in S. India in 1992
- high attack rate in adults
- prev exposure to 01 doesn’t confer immunity to 0139
- vaccines based on 01 Ag likely not effective
- likely to cause next cholera pandemic
Describe the pathogenesis of cholera disease?
- adherence to small bowel mucosa via Outer Membrane Protein and flagellar adhesins
- Toxin: 2 subunits
- B=binding
- A=active
- ⇒enters cell
- ⇒stimulates cAMP
- ⇒inhibits NaCl absorption
- ⇒stimulates Cl excretion (water, K & bicarb follow Cl)
- ⇒net loss of water, NaCl, K, bicarb
What are the factors affecting severity of Cholera infection?
- local intestinal immunity (previous infection Vibrio)
- infecting dose
- Gastric acidity (drugs or prior gastrectomy or age)
- blood group - more severe if gp ‘O’
- Describe the clincial presentation of cholera
- mortality rate?
- Varies from
- Assymptomatic
- ⇒ mild diarrhea
- ⇒’rice water stools’ +/- bloating +/- vomiting
- ⇒severe dehydration, acidosis, Elyte disturbance
- ⇒ileus, muscle weakness, cramps, arrhythmias
- ⇒Acute Renal Failure (ATN), shock coma death
- Adults may lose 500 to 1000 ml/hr
- hypoglycemia, esp in children
- most cases mild, self-limiting
- Mortality 5-15%
- ‘Cholera sicca’: little d&v, rapid collapse, high mortality
Cholera Diagnosis
- presumptive in epidemics, subsequent confirmation
- dark field microscopy ⇒ darting vibrios
- movement inhibited by antisera (01 or 0139)
- transport in alkaline peptone water or CaryBlair medium
- Stool culture (stool/rectal swab) on TCBS agar
- send for biotyping, serotyping, sensitivity
- recently immunodiagnostic dipsticks for rapid diagnosis in field conditions
What is the role of the Rapid Diagnostic Test?
Cholera Management
- Fluids, fluids, fluids
- ORS usually sufficient
- IV if severe dehydration/shock (Ringer’s Lactate/Hartman’s)
- Antibiotics: shorten period of diarrhea and reduce fluid loss
- antibiotic resistance common
- doxycycline
- SMT-TMP
- cipro
- azithromycin or erythromycin (if pregnant)
- nb resistance to SMT-TMP and erythromycin common
- antibiotic resistance common
- Zinc- reduces diarrhea volume and duration in children
- chlorpromazine - anti-secretory, rarely used
How do you make ORS for cholera?
- one litre water
- 2.6 gm NaCl
- 2.9 gm trisodium citrate
- 1.5 gm KCl
- 13.5 gm glucose (or 50 gm boiled and cooled rice powder instead of glucose
OR
- one level teaspoon salt
- eight level teaspoons of sugar
- one litre of clean water
- remember 1 thumb for salt, the other for the litre of water and the 8 fingers for 8 level teaspoons of sugar.
nb standard ORS better than reduced osmolarity
Cholera Case Management
- Severe
- lethargic, unconscious, floppy, very sunken eyes
- drinks poorly or unable to drink, mouth very dry
- Skin pinch goes back very slowly
- No tears (only for kids)
- ⇒IV therapy + antibiotics + ORS
- Moderate
- restless and irritable, sunken eyes
- dry mouth but thirsty, drinks eagerly
- skin pinch goes back slowly
- No tears (kids)
- ⇒ ORS + very close surveillance
- No dehydration
- none of the above signs
- ⇒ ORS at home
- none of the above signs
Cholera IV Management: How much fluid?
- Fluids + frequently assess response
- In all patients with hypovolemic shock, initial fluid deficit will be at least 10% of body weight
- rule of thumb: give 1/3 total estimated deficit in first 20-30 min
- Severe dehydration: 100 ml/kg over 3-6 hrs
- Age < 1yr 30 ml/kg over 60 min
- then 70 ml/kg over 5 hrs
- Age > 1 yr 30 ml/kg over 30 min then 70 ml/kg over 2.5 hrs
- Age < 1yr 30 ml/kg over 60 min
- Mild-mod dehydration
- ORS 75 ml/kg over 4 hrs
- No dehydration
- start giving ORS as soon as diarrhea starts.
- Give ORS after each loose stool