Research Roundup: June 2026 – October 2026

Article: Interdisciplinary Weight Management in a Safety-Net Health System: A Pilot Implementation Study 
Author: Katie Thure, MD, MPH
Mentors: Soma Wali, MD, Arash Nafisi, MD
Takeaway: This study found that a 6-month interdisciplinary weight management program was feasible, well-received, and associated with improved weight and health behaviors in a safety-net population.

Article: Primary intestinal lymphangiectasia across the lifespan: adult-pediatric comparisons of diagnostic delay, immune findings, and treatment patterns
Author: Thomas Stirrat, MD 
Takeaway: This systematic review of currently published cases suggests that primary intestinal lymphangiectasia is well represented in adults and is often diagnosed late.

Article: Global, Regional, and National Burden of Myocarditis and Its Impairment, 1990-2023
Author: Mohammad Keykhaei, MD, MPH
Takeaway: This international study estimated the global, regional, and national burden of myocarditis from 1990 to 2023.

Article: Invasive Cryptococcal Meningitis: A Sequelae of Primary Intestinal Lymphangiectasia
Author: Jeemin Kwon, MD
Mentor: Anthony Myint, MD
Takeaway: This case report describes a young male with primary intestinal lymphangiectasia who developed a serious secondary immunodeficiency and opportunistic infection.

Article: Kinetics of local C3 production orchestrates neutrophil recruitment in lung injury
Author: Neelou Etesami, MD, PhD
Mentor: Hrishikesh Kulkarni, MD, MSCI
Takeaway: This original research study investigates locally produced complement pathways from lung epithleial cells which drive the earliest neutrophil recruitment in bacterial pneumonia.

Article: Opioid Toxicity Associated With Tirzepatide in a Patient on Chronic Oral Morphine
Author: Nirosh E Mataraarachchi, MD, MSc
Mentor: Oscar Dellinger, MD
Takeaway: This case report describes a life-threatening opioid toxicity due to a possible drug interaction with a new GLP-1 therapy. 

Article: The Impact of Perioperative Immunosuppression on Post-surgical Outcomes in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Author: Andrew R Roney, MD
Mentor: Berkeley N Limketkai, MD
Takeaway: This retrospective cohort study found that perioperative biologic therapy was not associated with more 30-day complications after IBD surgery, while corticosteroids and immunomodulators were linked to higher rates of infectious complications.

Article: Unmasking Factor XIII Deficiency: Recurrent Intracranial Hemorrhage Despite Normal Coagulation Studies
Author: Karthik Ramesh, MD
Mentor: Nicolaos Palaskas, MD, PhD
Takeaway: This case report describes a patient with presumed vWD whose severe factor XIII deficiency went undetected for 25 years because cryoprecipitate treatment incidentally corrected it.

Article: Prevalence and Impact of Protein-Calorie Malnutrition in Hospitalized Patients with Steatotic Liver Disease
Author: Andrew R Roney, MD
Mentor: Berkeley N Limketkai, MD
Takeaway: This retrospective analysis of a national inpatient database found that protein-calorie malnutrition is more common in steatotic liver disease hospitalizations and is linked to higher mortality, longer stays, and greater costs.

Article: Profound Hypothyroidism as a Reversible Cause of Severe Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol (LDL-C) Elevation: A Case Report 
Author: Nirosh E Mataraarachchi, MD, MSc
Mentor: Shalini Bhat, MD
Takeaway: This case report describes severe LDL cholesterol elevations that reversed with treatment of profound hypothyroidism, highlighting the need to check thyroid function in severe hypercholesterolemia.

Article: Mitochondrial NCLX Couples Glucagon- and PDE2A-Dependent Signals to Regulate Hepatic Lipid Metabolism
Author: Essam A Assali, MD, PhD
Mentor: Oscar Dellinger, MD, PhD
Takeaway: This preclinical study in mice shows that a glucagon-driven mitochondrial calcium pathway helps the liver burn fat, and that boosting it with a PDE2A inhibitor reduced fat buildup in MASLD models, pointing to a possible therapeutic target.

Article: Meeting Patients with Hepatitis C Where They Are: Lessons from the HIV Epidemic in the USA
Author: Anna Scialli, MD, MPH, MSW
Mentor: Tara Vijayan, MD, MPH
Takeaway: This article argues that applying lessons from HIV care, such as reframing nonadherence as a need for more support and using a test-and-treat approach, could expand access to hepatitis C treatment.

Article: Eosinophilic cholangitis as an indeterminate biliary mimic: A systematic review of outcomes
Author: Thomas Stirrat, MD
Takeaway: This systematic review of 55 published cases found that eosinophilic cholangitis often presents as an indeterminate biliary stricture mistaken for malignancy, but responds well to steroids.

Article: Endoscopic Management of Cystic Duct Remnant Stones Causing Post-Cholecystectomy Syndrome: A Multi-Center Experience
Author: Yousif Arif, MD
Mentor: Danny Issa, MD
Takeaway: This retrospective multicenter study found that ERCP was highly effective and safe for treating cystic duct remnant stones in patients with postcholecystectomy syndrome, though cholangioscopy with lithotripsy was often needed.

Article: National Trends in Atrial Fibrillation Hospitalizations, Readmissions, and Mortality, 2010 to 2022
Author: Haseeb Khan, MD
Mentor: Peter Hanna, MD, PhD, Boback Ziaeian, MD, PhD
Takeaway: This retrospective analysis of national hospitalization data found that US atrial fibrillation hospitalizations and readmissions rose modestly from 2010 to 2022, with renal disease, public insurance, and other comorbidities and socioeconomic factors linked to worse outcomes.

Article: Newly Diagnosed VEXAS (Vacuoles, E1 Enzyme, X-linked, Autoinflammatory, Somatic) Syndrome in a Patient Presenting With Legionella Pneumonia
Author: Alejandro Sanchez Jimenez, MD
Mentor: Jessica Ma, MD
Takeaway: This case report describes a 77-year-old man with recurrent inflammatory episodes who was diagnosed with VEXAS syndrome during hospitalization for Legionella pneumonia, highlighting the need to consider VEXAS in patients with unexplained recurrent inflammation and macrocytic anemia.

Article: National Impact of Optimal Implementation of Guideline-Directed Medical Therapy in Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction
Author: Mohammad Keykhaei,MD
Mentor: Gregg C Fonarow, MD
Takeaway: This modeling study estimates that optimal use of quadruple guideline-directed therapy in US patients with HFrEF could prevent about 114,000 deaths and 357,000 hospitalizations annually.

Article: Believe Your Patient Who Denies Alcohol Dependence/Celiac Disease as a Cause of Wernicke Encephalopathy
Author: Zainab Aziz, MD
Mentor: Guy Weiss, MD
Takeaway: This case report describes a patient initially misdiagnosed with Wernicke encephalopathy who was later found to have celiac disease, highlighting that it can present with neurologic symptoms and improve with a gluten-free diet.

Article: Early discontinuation of chemotherapy in older adults with early breast cancer: results from the prospective multicenter HOPE study
Author: Arman Niknafs, MD
Mentor: Mina Sedrak, MD, MS
Takeaway: This post-hoc cohort analysis found that nearly one-quarter of older adults with early-stage breast cancer stopped chemotherapy early, with recent falls and reduced daily functioning as risk factors, and discontinuation was linked to higher non-breast cancer mortality.

Article: Gender Authorship in Gastroenterology and Hepatology: Trends and Persistent Seniority Gaps
Author: Thomas Stirrat, MD
Takeaway: This analysis of over 60,000 publications found that women made up 31.5% of first authors and 20.8% of last authors from 2013 to 2025, with both rising over time but a persistent gap in senior authorship.

Article: Dashboard-Directed Intervention to Improve Guideline-Directed Heart Failure Therapy for Veterans
Author: Qicong Sheng, MD
Mentor: Boback Ziaeian, MD, PhD
Takeaway: This single-center implementation study found that a fellow- and nurse practitioner-led population health clinic using a heart failure dashboard improved guideline-directed therapy use, particularly SGLT2 inhibitors, in a VA setting.

Article: Association Between Age at Kidney Transplantation and Risk of Early Graft Loss
Author: Karina Alas Marroquin, MD
Takeaway: This retrospective registry analysis found that adolescents and young adults had roughly double the risk of early kidney graft loss compared with older recipients. 

Article: Area Deprivation Index Predicts Colonoscopic Follow-up After Abnormal Fecal Immunochemical Testing for Colorectal Cancer Screening
Author: Yousif Arif, MD
Mentor: Folasade May, MD, PhD
Takeaway: This retrospective cohort study found that only about half of patients completed colonoscopy within 6 months of an abnormal FIT, and higher neighborhood deprivation was associated with lower odds of follow-up. 

Article: Feasibility and Implementation of a Group Therapy Program for Adults Living With Chronic Pain and Sickle Cell Disease
Author: Queen-Ivie C. Egiebor, MD, DrPH
Mentor: Amie Patel, MD, Alice Kuo, MD, PhD, MBA
Takeaway: This pilot retrospective study describes a trainee-led group therapy program for adults with sickle cell disease and chronic pain, finding it feasible with early signs of improved engagement and mental health outcomes.

Article: Hydroxyurea-associated digital gangrene: a case report and narrative review of reported cases and emerging pathophysiology
Author: Ghadi Ghanem, MD
Mentor: Mathew Carroll, MD
Takeaway: This case report describes the first reported hydroxyurea-associated digital gangrene in a patient with polycythemia vera, which stabilized after stopping the drug.

Article: Long COVID sequelae in heart transplant recipients
Author: Tyler Morad, MD
Mentor: Jeffrey Hsu, MD, PhD
Takeaway: This prospective survey study found that heart transplant recipients did not have a higher burden of Long COVID symptoms than patients with cardiomyopathy, and may experience fewer persistent symptoms.

Article: Cost Offset With Quadruple Therapy for Heart Failure
Author: Mohammad Keykhaei, MD
Mentor: Gregg C Fonarow, MD
Takeaway: This economic evaluation using Medicare-linked registry data projected that implementing quadruple guideline-directed therapy after heart failure hospitalization would substantially reduce hospitalization costs. 

Article: Training Stage, Program Pedigree, Degree Pathway, and Research Productivity among United States Gastroenterology Fellows
Author: Thomas Stirrat, MD
Takeaway: This cross-sectional study examined publication output among GI fellows who varied by training stage, program ranking, gender, and degree pathway 

Article: Body composition changes during cardiac rehabilitation and long-term cardiovascular outcomes in patients with coronary artery disease
Author: Tara Shahrvini, MD
Mentor: Tamara B Horwich, MD
Takeaway: This cohort study found that an increase in body fat percentage during cardiac rehabilitation was associated with higher rates of cardiovascular events in patients with coronary artery disease, while changes in BMI showed no association.

Article: Association between Lipoprotein(a) and diet quality with cardiovascular disease risk: the multi-ethnic study of atherosclerosis
Author: Harveen Sekhon, MD
Mentor: Karol Watson, MD, PhD
Takeaway: This prospective study found that elevated Lp(a) and poor diet quality were independently associated with higher long-term ASCVD risk, and a healthy diet lowered absolute risk but did not fully offset the excess risk from elevated Lp(a).