gastroenterology

An endoscopic procedure performed by UCLA Health’s Dr. Alireza Sedarat gave Lavario the ability to eat and drink normally again.

“I could not swallow for a year and a half,” recalls MaryAnn Levario.

Levario came to UCLA Health after a failed surgery for achalasia left her unable to eat or drink. “I had [...]

Claude Lagardere thought the pain in his throat was from something he had to eat.

“I thought it was from a taco I’d eaten a few days before, but the hurt wouldn’t go away,” recalls Lagardere, 78, of his experience in 2018. “I was referred to UCLA Health gastroenterologist Dr. [...]

Dear Doctor: What on earth is a “gutoscopy”? We saw it on the news -- something about a pill that goes in one end and comes out the other, but it sounded more like science fiction than anything real.

Dear Reader: Your question brings us to the brave new world of [...]

Learn about her devotion to medicine and social injustice

The causes behind bellyaches

“I love to bake, and the blue ribbon helps raise awareness,” says Marissa Chavez, a gastroenterology technician at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. “March is colon cancer awareness month. Two years ago I wanted to make [...]

A few years ago, after being sick for over a year, I was referred to Dr. Eric Esrailian at UCLA. I clearly remember the first day when I saw Dr. Esrailian. It was like an angel walked into the room. After examining my records and talking to me [...]

Hello! To be honest I have so many Doctors to thank. I have been an inpatient at UCLA four times in the last 11 months. I have two ongoing conditions, one being a GI disease and I must thank Dr. Kevin Ghassemi for my diagnosis. After suffering for [...]

Robert Greenwald was told after a routine colonoscopy that he had a suspicious polyp that was a little bigger than a quarter in a hard-to-reach place that was going to require major surgery to remove – even though it wasn’t certain if the polyp was cancerous or not. [...]

The level of care and the comfort UCLA has provided my family is second to none and will forever be part of our lives and etched in our memories. In 2005, our daughter was born into the caring arms of lovely nurses and amazing doctors. With almost no complications, mother [...]