Aim: Starting from a case presentation, this review aims to present literature data on inflammatory fibroid polyps (IFPs) of the small intestine. Methods: Case report and systematic review. A comprehensive systematic review of English literature using PubMed was conducted, based on Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The used key words were: “inflammatory fibroid polyp” or “Vanek”, including only cases with IFPs localized of the small intestine, published from 1976 to 2019. Results: We present a case of a 38-year old patient with intestinal IFP presenting with acute abdomen due to intussusception diagnosed with ultrasound (US) based on a target sign and visible solid tumor in the small intestine leading to prompt surgical treatment. A diagnosis of IFP was made based on the pathohistological findings. Moreover, a systematic review of small intestine IFPs was conducted which is, to our knowledge, the first comprehensive systematic literature review on this topic. The analysis included 53 case reports or case series concerning 77 cases of small bowel IFPs. The patients were aged from 4 to 75 years (average 45.2), with a female predominance (59.7%). The most common localization was the ileum in 77.9% cases, followed by the jejunum (13%) and the duodenum (6.5%). The most common clinical presentation was abdominal pain due to intussusception (63.6%). Regarding diagnostic methods, computed tomography (CT) was frequently used as primary diagnostic method (26%) followed by exploratory laparotomy (16.9%), endoscopy (7.8%) and US (6.5%). Combination of US and CT contributed to the diagnosis in 9.1% of cases. The majority of cases were treated surgically (92.21%), while only a minority benefited of minimally invasive techniques such as endoscopy. Conclusions: Small bowel IFPs, ones of the least common benign tumors, are characterized by variable clinical signs and symptoms and can potentially lead to serious consequences for the patient.

The COVID-19 pandemic was and still is a global burden with more than 178,000,000 cases reported so far. Although it mainly affects respiratory organs, COVID-19 has many extrapulmonary manifestations, including, among other things, liver injury. Many hypotheses have been proposed to explain direct and indirect impacts of the SARS-CoV-2 virus on the liver. Studies have shown that around 15–30% of patients with COVID-19 have underlying liver disease, and 20–35% of patients with COVID-19 had altered liver enzymes at admission. One of the hypotheses is reactivation of an underlying liver disease, such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Some studies have shown that NAFLD is associated with severe COVID-19 and poor outcome; nevertheless, other studies showed no significant difference between groups in comparing complications and clinical outcomes. Patients with NAFLD may suffer severe COVID-19 due to other comorbidities, especially cardiovascular diseases. The link between NAFLD and COVID-19 is not clear yet, and further studies and research are needed.

Plasmablastic lymphoma (PBL) is relatively new clinical entity described as a distinct subtype of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). It is characterized by its aggressive nature and proliferation of large neoplastic cells resembling immunoblasts including cells with more obvious plasmacytic differentiation. In this case report, we describe an unexpected finding of PBL associated with a mature cystic teratoma of the ovary in a young immune competent woman. A 19-year old woman was admitted to the hospital with generalized lymphadenopathy, a pelvic tumor mass measuring 35 × 30 cm and a 4 cm lump in her right breast. She underwent a right salpingo-oophorectomy, lymphadenectomy, splenectomy, omentectomy, and a right breast lumpectomy. On macroscopic examination the right ovary was replaced by a thick-walled multilocular cystic tumor. Upon incision, the cysts were filled with thick, greasy sebaceous material and hair and there were several solid nodules within the cyst walls. Histological examination revealed a mature cystic teratoma and malignant non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) within the solid nodules. Tumor tissue from the right breast, spleen and lymph nodes, all had the same histological, NHL morphology. After extensive immunostaining, a diagnosis of PBL was made. Following surgery, the patient was treated with different chemotherapy regimens, without any significant regression of the disease, and died of multiple organ failure. Primary NHL of the ovary is relatively rare occurrence while secondary involvement by lymphoma is much more common. PBL is a rare lymphoma, primarily reported in the jaw and oral mucosa, but also documented in extra-oral sites. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case described in a mature ovarian cystic teratoma. Although the patient was HIV-negative and immune competent, she had progressive disease and died despite aggressive chemotherapy 11 months after the initial diagnosis.

Aim. Our aim was to investigate the association among elastographic parameters of liver steatosis and fibrosis, controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) and liver stiffness measurement (LSM), with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Methods. In this prospective, cross‐sectional study, we have evaluated 937 patients with one or more components of the metabolic syndrome who had an esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) due to GERD symptoms. In all patients, a laboratory analysis, an abdominal ultrasound, and FibroScan measurements were done. GERD was defined by EGD. Results. The mean body mass index (BMI) of the study population was 30.95 ± 5.45 kg/m². The prevalence of increased CAP was 82.6% (774/937). Patients with increased CAP were younger, were more obese, had higher prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia, and had higher values of aminotransferases. Similar results of higher prevalence in patients with elevated CAP were observed with GERD, hiatal hernia, and insufficient cardia (defined as deficient or absent closure of the gastric inlet in relation to the esophagus). Additionally, patients with elevated CAP had a higher prevalence of GERD grades B and C in comparison to those without elevated CAP. Consequently, patients who did not have elevated CAP had a higher prevalence of GERD grade A. Even though we have found an upward trend in the prevalence of GERD, hiatal hernia, and insufficient cardia, there was no significant difference between subjects with fibrosis (F) 1‐2 and F3‐4 stage of fibrosis or F1 and F2‐4. In a binary logistic regression, a significant positive association with GERD was obtained for CAP. Furthermore, a significant positive association with hiatal hernia was obtained for BMI and CAP. Finally, a significant positive association with hiatal hernia was obtained with CAP in multivariate analysis. Conclusion. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to reveal a positive association between CAP as a surrogate marker of liver steatosis and GERD after adjustments for other clinical variables.