Objective: The relationship between proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and asthma is controversial. The goal of this study was to determine the association between PPI use in non-asthma subjects and their subsequent asthma prevalence. Design: nationalwide, population-based cohort study Methods: We conducted a nationwide, population-based retrospective cohort study using data from the National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) of Taiwan from 1999–2013. We identified 24077 adult patients with PPI use for more than 3 months and 24077 controls matched by propensity score on a one-to-one ratio for age, gender, comorbidities (hypertension, hyperlipidemia, gastroesophageal reflux disease, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, peptic ulcer disease, diabetes, and sleep apnea syndrome), and medications (histamine 2 receptor antagonists [H2RA], non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs [NSAIDs], and acetaminophen). The cumulative asthma incidence for the two cohorts in the follow-up period was estimated with the Kaplan-Meier method and the difference was examined using the log-rank test. Multivariate Cox regression models were used to calculate the adjusted hazard ratios (HR). Results: The overall incidence of asthma was 1.58-fold greater in the PPI cohort than in the non-PPI cohort (13.3 versus 8.4 per 1000 person-years), with an adjusted HR of 1.76 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.64–1.88). In patients without previous peptic ulcer disease, the adjusted HR of asthma associated with PPIs was higher than in the non-PPI group (1.95; 95% CI, 1.80–2.11). The risk of asthma due to PPI use was also more significant in patients not receiving H2RA (1.81; 95% CI, 1.66–1.96), NSAIDs (1.93; 95% CI, 1.73–2.15), and acetaminophen (1.88; 95% CI, 1.70–2.08). Conclusions: This population base study demonstrated that patients with long-duration PPI use are at a higher risk of developing asthma, regardless of age, gender, comorbidities, and medications.

Primary liver cancer is one of the leading causes of death globally. Liver cancer has a unique geographical distribution, as its etiologies include chronic viral infections and aging. We hypothesize that the human development index (HDI), current health expenditure (CHE) per capita, and CHE-to-gross domestic product ratio (CHE/GDP) influence the incidence, mortality, and mortality-to-incidence ratios (MIRs) of liver cancer worldwide. Data were obtained from the Global Cancer Observatory (GLOBOCAN) database and the World Health Organization. MIRs and the changes in MIR over time (δMIR) were used to evaluate the correlation of expenditures on healthcare and the HDI disparities via Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient. The crude incidence and mortality were significantly associated with HDI, CHE per capita, and CHE/GDP. Specifically, there were significant associations between δMIR and HDI, as well as between δMIR and CHE per capita. However, there were no significant associations between δMIR and CHE/GDP. Evidently, a favorable liver cancer δMIR was not associated with CHE/GDP, although it had a significant association with HDI and CHE per capita. These results are worthy of the attention of public health systems in correlation to improved outcomes in liver cancer.

Background: Global variation in the incidence and outcomes of colorectal cancer (CRC) is associated with many factors, among which screening policies and early treatment play substantial roles. However, screening programs and intense treatment are expensive and require good health care systems. For CRC, no clear association has yet been established between clinical outcomes and health care disparities. Method: We used the mortality-to-incidence ratio (MIR) of CRC as a measure of clinical outcomes for comparison with the Human Development Index (HDI), current health expenditure (CHE), and current health expenditure as a percentage of gross domestic product (CHE/GDP) using linear regression analyses. We included 171 countries based on data from the GLOBOCAN 2018 database. Results: We found that the regions with the lowest MIRs for CRC are Oceania and North America. A significant correlation was observed between incidence, mortality and HDI, CHE, and CHE/GDP among the countries enrolled. Furthermore, lower MIRs of CRC significantly correlated with higher HDI, CHE, and CHE/GDP (P < 0.001, P < 0.001, and P < 0.001, respectively). Conclusion: : CRC MIRs tend to be most favorable in countries with high health care expenditures and a high HDI.

Biliary and pancreatic cancers occur silently in the initial stage and become unresectable within a short time. When these diseases become symptomatic, biliary obstruction, either with or without infection, occurs frequently due to the anatomy associated with these cancers. The endoscopic management of these patients has changed, both with time and with improvements in medical devices. In this review, we present updated and integrated concepts for the endoscopic management of malignant biliary stricture. Endoscopic biliary drainage had been indicated in malignant biliary obstruction, but the concept of endoscopic management has changed with time. Although routine endoscopic stenting should not be performed in resectable malignant distal biliary obstruction (MDBO) patients, endoscopic biliary drainage is the treatment of choice for palliation in unresectable MDBO patients. Self-expanding metal stents (SEMS) have better stent patency and lower costs compared with plastic stents (PS). For malignant hilum obstruction, PS and uncovered SEMS yield similar short-term outcomes, while a covered stent is not usually used due to a potential unintentional obstruction of contralateral ducts.