GI symptoms with B1.617 variant
The latest strain of coronavirus B1.617 spreading in Victoria may have unusual features with more gastrointestinal symptoms, according to infectious disease experts.
Based on reports from India, patients infected with the new variant may present with atypical clinical features such as abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, said Professor Raina MacIntyre, Head of the Biosecurity Program at the Kirby Institute at the University of NSW.
Other atypical features include hearing impairment, loss of appetite, and myalgia.
“If this is the case, people should be on the alert for any of these symptoms as well as more typical COVID symptoms such as cough and fever,” said Professor MacIntyre.
Gluten does not cause cognitive impairment
A popular belief that gluten ingestion may affect cognitive function has not been borne out in a US study.
Long-term gluten intake was not associated with cognitive function in a cohort of almost 13,5000 middle aged women without celiac disease.
Dietary data collected over two decades showed that the mean gluten intake was 6.3 g/day, and there were no significant differences in standardized cognitive scores across highest and lowest levels of gluten intake. The cognitive measures included psychomotor speed and attention; learning and working memory, and global cognition.
The lack of association was seen after controlling for controlling for demographic and lifestyle risk factors and adjusting for sources of dietary gluten such as refined grains or whole grains.
The findings are published in JAMA Network Open.
Early CRC screening advised for first degree relatives of patients with polyps
Early screening for colorectal cancer should be considered for first degree relatives of patients with colorectal cancer because of their increased risk related to family history, according to US and Swedish researchers. In a case control study of 68 060 colorectal cancer patients and 333 753 matched controls they found that siblings and children of patients with colorectal polyps were at higher risk of colorectal cancer, particularly early onset disease. The odds ratios ranged from 1.23 for those with hyperplastic polyps to 1.44 for those with tubulovillous adenomas, they reported in the BMJ.
“Individuals with at least two first degree relatives with polyps or a first degree relative with polyps diagnosed at a young age, most of whom are not yet recommended for early screening according to existing guidelines, are at an increased risk of CRC, particularly early onset disease, and they might benefit from early screening,” the authors concluded.