Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0024523 (malabsorption)
 7,319 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The increasing prevalence and far-reaching medical, social, and economical implications of obesity have made it a national health-care crisis in the United States. About one in every three persons is at least 20% above "ideal" body weight, and approximately 5% have direct weight-related serious health problems (morbid obesity), including hypertension, hyperlipidemia, coronary artery disease, adult-onset diabetes mellitus, degenerative osteoarthropathy, and obstructive sleep apnea. Morbidly obese patients have an estimated 6- to 12-fold increase in mortality. In addition, they have a substantially diminished quality of life, not only physically but also psychosocially due to overt and occult prejudice. Weight reduction must be aggressively pursued in these patients. Medically supervised weight-control programs have been ineffective because patients cannot maintain pronounced long-term weight loss. In contrast, current operative methods have been proved to be effective in helping patients achieve and maintain permanent weight reduction. Several operations have been designed and assessed; with these procedures, weight loss is achieved by inducing malabsorption, maldigestion, early satiety, or a combination of these outcomes. Although these operations have associated side effects and limitations, the expected benefits outweigh the risks. For optimal results, patients must be carefully selected and treated by a multidisciplinary group.
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PMID:Surgical treatment of obesity: who is an appropriate candidate? 917 40

Selenium deficiency is a rare cause of cardiomyopathy that may be encountered by the forensic pathologist. Selenium deficiency is associated with a cardiomyopathy, myopathy and osteoarthropathy. In Asia and Africa, dietary selenium deficiency is associated with a cardiomyopathy known as Keshan disease and an osteoarthropathy called Kashin-Beck disease. Chronic selenium deficiency may also occur in individuals with malabsorption and long term selenium-deficient parenteral nutrition. Selenium deficiency causes myopathy as a result of the depletion of selenium-associated enzymes which protect cell membranes from damage by free radicals. We present a case of fulminant heart failure in a middle aged woman with a complex medical and surgical history including documented malabsorption and selenium deficiency. Pathological examination of the heart showed features consistent with Keshan disease.
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PMID:Fulminant heart failure due to selenium deficiency cardiomyopathy (Keshan disease). 1184 34