BACKGROUND Yacon is a root crop which contains high amounts of fructooligosaccharides (FOS). The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of yacon syrup on colon transit time in healthy volunteers. METHODS In a placebo-controlled, double-blind study yacon was administered to 16 healthy individuals (8 males, 8 females) in a dose of 20 g daily (equal to 6.4 g FOS) in a 2-week crossover ...

This paper describes a treatment-outcome study of Cognitive Trauma Therapy for Battered Women (CTT-BW) with PTSD. Derived from psychological learning principles, CTT-BW emphasizes the role of irrational beliefs and evaluative language in chronic PTSD. CTT-BW includes trauma history exploration, PTSD psychoeducation, stress management, psychoeducation about dysfunctional self-talk and self-monit...

n a series of elegant studies reported in this issue of ICellular and Molecular Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Anitha et al report that a high-fat diet results in slowing of gastrointestinal transit (by geometric center of fluorescein isothiocyanate distribution after gavage), total gastrointestinal transit (by first arrival of a blue dye in stool), and distal colonic transit (by the time tak...

Introduction: In this study, the effects of black tea extract of Iranian tea plant (Camellia sinensis var sinensis) and its polyphenolic pigment thearubigins were investigated on mice intestinal transit time. Method: Thearubigins were isolated by liquid-liquid fraction method. The effects of black tea extract and isolated thearubigins on intestinal propulsion were measured by charcoal propulsio...

the classical test theory (ctt) and item response theory (irt) are widely used in construction and analysis of exams and questionnaires. because of the various shortcomings of ctt, irt has been designed. even though irt has overcome most of the limitations of ctt and has made computer adaptive testing possible, it is still important to point out that not enough reasons exist to totally discard ...

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS Sodium phosphate is a key component of bowel preparation regimen for colon capsule endoscopy (CCE), but may cause serious complications. The aim of this study is to evaluate the use of Gastrografin, substituted for sodium phosphate, in CCE bowel preparation. PATIENTS AND METHODS In total, 29 patients (median age 64 years; 23 females) underwent CCE, covered by the nat...

Oil of mustard (OM) is a potent neuronal activator that promotes allodynia and hyperalgesia within minutes of application. In this study, OM was used to induce an acute colitis. We also investigated whether intracolonic OM-induced inflammation alters gastrointestinal (GI) function over a longer time frame as a model of postinflammatory irritable bowel syndrome (PI-IBS). Mice given a single admi...

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to assess clinical features and colonic transit patterns in Brazilian children with refractory constipation. METHODS From 2010 to 2013, 79 constipated patients received follow-up care in a tertiary hospital. Of these patients, 28 (aged 8-14 years) were refractory to conventional therapy and underwent a simplified visual method of nuclear colonic transit stu...

BACKGROUND/AIMS Although probiotics have been extensively studied in irritable bowel syndrome, data on the impact of probiotics on chronic constipation are scarce. We aimed to evaluate the effects of kefir, which is a probiotic fermented milk product, on the symptoms, colonic transit, and bowel satisfaction scores of patients with chronic constipation. MATERIALS AND METHODS Twenty consecutive...

Attention is increasingly being focussed on probiotics as potential agents to restore or improve gastrointestinal (GI) transit. Determining mechanism of action would support robust health claims. The probiotic bacterium Bifidobacterium lactis HN019 reduces transit time, but its mechanisms of action and effects on motility patterns are poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate ...