6
WORLD GASTROENTEROLOGY NEWS JULY 2019
Editorial | Expert Point of View | WCOG 2019 | WDHD News | WGO & WGOF News | WGO Global Guidelines | Calendar of Events
Message from the Editors
Mário Reis Álvares-da-Silva, MD, PhD
Professor of Hepatology
Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul
Porto Alegre, Brazil
Christina M. Surawicz, MD, MACG
Professor of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology
Associate Dean for Faculty Development
University of Washington School of Medicine
Seattle, Washington, USA
2019 continues to be a busy and
productive year for us and our many
member societies. You can see
updates from several international
meetings in this first issue.
We are proud to highlight the
EPOV article “Achalasia: new
insights into Pathophysiology” by
Drs. Janette Furuzawa-Carbelleda,
Gonzalo Torres-Villalobos and Miguel
A. Valdovinos. (Instituto Nacional
de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición
“Salvador Zubirán”, Mexico City).
They state that “findings in molecular
pathology in patients with achalasia
have suggested the hypothesis that
achalasia is an autoimmune disorder.”
They cite evidence of preceding viral
infection in some cases, the pathology
showing chronic inflammation,
presence of organ specific antibodies,
association with autoimmune diseases,
as well as improvement in symptoms
with immune suppressive therapy in
some patients. Their excellent article
gives us a new way of thinking and
approaching this important disease.
Note also that new Guidelines are
available!
The new Pancreatic Cystic Lesions
Guidelines as well as updated “Endoscope
disinfection update: a guide
to resource-sensitive reprocessing”
Guidelines are now published. The
new Diet and the Gut Guideline is
now available in Portuguese, Spanish
and Russian translations. They can be
found on the WGO website at http://
www.worldgastroenterology.org/
guidelines/global-guidelines.
Plan to attend the World Congress
of Gastroenterology (WCOG)
meeting in Istanbul from 21-24
September 2019. One important
feature will be WGO Guidelines and
Cascades. Many will be highlighted
as part of the robust Scientific Program
of the WCOG in Istanbul. Be
sure to attend the sessions featuring:
Celiac Disease, Diet and the Gut,
GERD, HCC, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis
C, IBD, IBS, NASH and NAFL, and
Management of Strongyloidiasis.