Conference Papers

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This collection contains abstracts of conference papers, presented at local and international conferences by the staff of the Faculty of Medicine

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    Quality of life in teenagers with abdominal pain related functional gastrointestinal disorders who have been exposed to child abuse
    (Belgian Society of Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (BeSPGHAN),, 2013) Devanarayana, N.M.; Rajindrajith, S.; Benninga, M.A.
    AIMS: Large number of previous studies conducted in children and adults have shown a significant association between abdominal pain predominant functional gastrointestinal disorders (AP-FGD) and exposure to child abuse. The main objective of this study was to assess the impact of child abuse on quality of life of Sri Lankan with AP-FGD. METHODS: A randomly selected group of 13-18 year olds were screened using the Rome iii questionnaires criteria for AP-FGD were recruited after obtaining consent from school administration, parents and teenagers themselves. Information regarding exposure to abuse and quality of life were assessed using previously translated and validated questionnaires. The questionnaires were administered in an examination setting to ensure confidentiality and privacy. Research assistants were present during filling the question¬naires and verifications were provided. They were collected on the same day. RESULTS: A total of 290 children with AP-FGD were recruited [males 128 (44.1%), mean age 14.6 years and SDI 1.5 years]. The number of children exposed to physical, emotional and sexual abuse, were respectively 90 (31.0%), 101 (34.8%) and 16 (5.5%). Average scores obtained for physical (85.3% vs.89.3% in nonabused), emotional (69.9% vs.79.7%), social (86.3% vs. 92.6%) and school (73.7% vs. 80.6%) functioning domains of quality of life in children exposed to emotional abuse were significantly lower (p < 0.05, unpaired t-test). Similar decrease was observed in children exposed physical abuse in social (86.4% vs. 92.2%) and school (74.6% vs. 79.9%) functioning domains (p < 0.05), but not in physical and emotional functioning domains (p > 0.05). Exposure to sexual abuse did not show a significant difference in in quality of life (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS : Even among teenagers with AP-FGD, those exposed to child abuse have a significantly lower quality of life than those not exposed to abuse.
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    Oro-caecal transit in Sri Lankan children and adolescents with functional recurrent abdominal pain
    (Wiley Blackwell Scientific Publications, 2008) Devanarayana, N.M.; de Silva, D.G.H.; de Silva, H.J.
    INTRODUCTION: Recurrent abdominal pain (RAP) is a common paediatric problem. The majority of the affected have no organic pathology. Gastrointestinal motility abnormalities are considered as a possible cause for their symptoms. This study evaluated oro-caecal transit in children and adolescents with functional RAP. METHODS: Thirty one children with functional RAP and 20 healthy children from the same geographical area underwent oro-caecal transit time measurement by lactulose (0.25 g/kg in 10% solution) breath hydrogen test. None had evidence of organic disease, except for one control who had a positive Helicobacter pylori stool antigen test. RESULTS: Oro-caecal transit times could be calculated in 30 patients [10 (33.3%) males, mean age 7.2 years, SD 2.4 years, 12 functional abdominal pain, 8 irritable bowel syndrome, 8 functional dyspepsia, 1 abdominal migraine, 1 non-specific abdominal pain according to Rome III criteria] and 19 controls [10 (52.6%) males, mean age 9 years, SD 2.7 years]. One patient (3%) and 1 control (5%) were non-responders. Oro-caecal transit time was significantly prolonged in patients (median 90 min, range 45–150 min) compared to controls (median 75 min, range 30–105 min) (p = 0.0045). Oro-caecal transit time did not correlate with scores obtained for severity of abdominal pain (r = 0.176, p = 0.354) and had no association with exposure to recent stressful life events (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Oro-caecal transit time was delayed in children and adolescents with functional RAP. The future studies are needed to confirm the role of delayed oro-caecal transit in generation of symptoms, and to evaluate the therapeutic value of drugs that normalize small intestinal transit.
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    Gastrointestinal disorders in children admitted to a tertiary care paediatric unit in Sri Lanka
    (Wiley Blackwell Scientific Publications, 2008) Devanarayana, N.M.; Adikari, A.M.D.B.; Sanjeewa, P.A.B.; Rajindrajith, S.
    OBJECTIVES : Gastrointestinal diseases, including diarrhoea and abdominal pain, are common presenting complains in children admitted to hospitals. In those with abdominal pain, non-specific abdominal pain is the commonest diagnosis at discharge. This study evaluated the gastrointestinal disorders in children admitted to a tertiary care general paediatric unit in Sri Lanka. METHODS: Records of all neonates, infants and children admitted to University paediatric unit in North Colombo Teaching Hospital, Ragama, Sri Lanka, during 12 month period from 01/10/2006 to 30/09/2007, were evaluated. Demographic information, details regarding the symptoms, exam nation findings, investigations, treatments and diagnosis at discharge were analysed retrospectively. RESULTS: Of the 5202 patients admitted during the study period, 167 (3.2%) had gastrointestinal disorders [90 (54.9%) were males, mean age 6.3 years, SD 2.5 years, range 2–13 years]. Common presenting complains were diarrhoea [79 (47.3%)], abdominal pain [62 (37.1%)], constipation [10 (6%)] and vomiting [8 (4.8%)]. Most common discharge diagnosis was acute gastroenteritis (AGE) [57 (45.5%)]. Of 62 children presented with abdominal pain, only 23 (36.1%) had exact diagnosis at the discharge (AGE 13, gastritis 3, constipation 4, gastro-oesophageal reflux 1, typhoid fever 1, functional abdominal pain 1). CONCLUSIONS: Diarrhoea and abdominal pain accounted for more than 80% of hospital admissions due to gastrointestinal disorders. Nearly two third of patients admitted due to abdominal pain had no diagnosis at discharge. Even though, Rome III criteria are widely available, only one patient was diagnosed as having functional gastrointestinal disorder.
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    Personality assessment in children with abdominal pain predominant functional gastrointestinal diseases
    (Wiley Blackwell Scientific Publications, 2012) Ranasinghe, N.; Rajindrajith, S.; Devanarayana, N.M.; Warnakulasuriya, T.; Nishanthini, S.; Perera, M.S.
    BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Chronic abdominal pain is a commonly associated with psychological problems. This study aimed to evaluate the personality traits in teenagers with abdominal pain predominant functional gastrointestinal diseases (AP-FGD). METHODS: Data regarding gastrointestinal symptoms, and personality assessment were collected from teenagers aged 13–18 years from 5 randomly selected schools in Ampare district of Sri Lanka. AP-FGD were diagnosed using Rome III criteria. Translated and validated personality assessment questionnaire (PAQ) was used to assess the total personality maladjustment score and personality domains; namely hostility and aggression, dependency, lack of self esteem, lack of self adequacy, emotional instability, emotional unresponsiveness, and negative world view. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: A total of 1697 children were recruited [males 778 (45.9%), mean age 15.1 years and SD 1.66 years]. AP-FGD were seen in 202 (11.9%) teenagers. They were compared with 1051 normal children. When the cutoff value for Sri Lankan children (89) was used, 66.3% of with AP-FGD and 42.5% controls had PAQ scores within that of psychological maladjustment (p < 0.001). When the international normative value of 105 was used, these percentages were 27.2% and 11.2% respectively (p < 0.0001). Subgroup analysis revealed similar differences in all 4 subtypes of AP-FGD compared to controls (p < 0.05). Children with AP-FGD had significant higher mean scores for all personality domains compared to controls except for dependence (p < 0.05). Children with irritable bowel syndrome and abdominal migraine also showed similar results (p < 0.05). Apart from dependency and emotional instability children with functional dyspepsia were noted to have higher mean scores for all other personality domains (p < 0.05). In addition, children with functional abdominal pain had signifi cantly higher mean scores for all personality domains except dependency and negative world view (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Psychological maladjustment is significantly more common in all four subtypes of AP-FGD.
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    Delayed gastric emptying rates and impaired antral motility in children fulfilling ROME III criteria for functional abdominal pain
    (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2011) Devanarayana, N.M.; Rajindrajith, S.; Rathnamalala, N.; Samaraweera, S.; Benninga, M.A.
    BACKGROUND: Abdominal pain is a common paediatric disorder affecting approximately 10% of children worldwide. The majority of affected children has no identifiable organic cause for their symptoms and considered to have functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGD). Gastric sensory motor dysfunctions have been implicated in the pathophysiology of FGD such as functional dyspepsia and irritable bowel syndrome. However, very little is known regarding gastric motility in children with functional abdominal pain (FAP), whose predominant symptom is abdominal pain. AIM: We hypothesized that abnormal gastric emptying and impaired antral motility are possible underlying mechanisms of symptoms in children with FAP. METHODS: All children referred to the Gastroenterology Research Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya from 1st January 2006 to 31st December 2010 were screened and those fulfilling Rome III criteria for FAP were recruited. All patients were screened for organic disorders using history, examination and basic investigations (urine microscopy and culture, stool microscopy, C-reactive protein, full blood count and liver and renal function tests). An age and sex compatible group of healthy children were selected as controls. Liquid gastric emptying rate (GER) and antral motility (frequency of antral contractions, amplitude of antral contractions and antral motility index) were assessed using a previously reported ultrasound method. Results: A total of 102 children with FAP [37 (36.3%) males, 4–14 years, mean 7.8 years, SD 2.7 years] and 20 healthy controls [8 (40%) males, 4–14 years, mean 8.4 years, SD 3.0 years] were recruited. Average GER (42.1% vs. 66.2% in controls), amplitude of antral contractions (56.5% vs. 89%), frequency of contractions per 3 min (8.5 vs. 9.3) and antral motility index (4.9 vs. 8.3) were significantly lower in patients with FAP compared to controls ( p<0.01). Fasting antral area was higher in patients (1.4 vs. 0.6, p<0.0001). GER negatively correlated with the scores obtained for severity of abdominal pain (r= -0.29, p=0.004). CONCLUSIONS: Gastric emptying and antral motility parameters were significantly impaired in patients with FAP and GER negatively correlated with symptom severity. These findings highlight the possible role of gastrointestinal motility abnormalities in the pathophysiology of childhood FAP
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    Therapeutic effects of domperidone on abdominal pain-predominant functional gastrointestinal disorders: randomized, double-blind, placebo- controlled trial.
    (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2015) Karunanayake, A.; Devanarayana, N.M.; Rajindrajith, S.; de Silva, A.
    INTRODUCTION: The therapeutic effect of domperidone on abdominal pain-predominant functional gastrointestinal diseases (AP-FGIDs) was assessed on children in 5-12 year age group at the Gastroenterology Research Laboratory of Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka. METHODS: Children fulfilling Rome III criteria for AP-FGIDs were recruited from the out-patient clinic of the University Paediatric Unit, North Colombo Teaching Hospital, Ragama, Sri Lanka, after obtaining parental consent. They were randomized in to 8 weeks of placebo or Domperidone (Motillium 10 mg, 3 times per day, before meals) groups, using computer generated random numbers. Placebo was a specially prepared dummy tablet without any active ingredients, had the same colour, size, shape and taste of domperidone tablet and were packaged similarly. Primary outcomes defined were cure (abdominal pain less than 25 mm on the visual analogue scale and no impact on daily activities) and improvement (pain relief and sense of improvement recorded on global assessment scale). Secondary outcomes were significant improvement in symptoms, gastric motility, quality of life (QoL) and family impact. Both patients and investigators who assessed primary and secondary outcomes before and after intervention were blind to inventions administered. Symptom severity was recorded on a validated 100 mm visual analogue scale. Translated and validated PedQL Generic Score Scale version 4.0 and Family Impact Module were used. Gastric motility was assessed using a validated ultrasound method. RESULTS: One hundred children were enrolled and 89 completed the trial [Placebo 42 (22 girls), Domperidone 47(33 girls)]. While comparing primary outcomes, domperidone group had significant improvement [37 (78.7%) vs. 25 (59.5%) in placebo group, p = 0.04], while no such difference was observed in cure. When assessing secondary outcomes, domperidone group reported significant reduction in abdominal pain severity (70.84% vs. 48.18% p = 0.03) and improvement in motility index (29.3% vs. 8.6% p = 0.04) after intervention. No such difference was seen in improvement of QoL and family impact (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Domperidone has a favorable therapeutic effect on improvement AP-FGIDs in children aged 5-12 years. It causes significant reduction in abdominal pain and improvement in motility of the gastric antrum. However, it has no significant effect on improvement of QoL and family impact.
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    Recurrent abdominal pain syndrome among school children in the Gampaha district in Sri Lanka
    (Sri Lanka Medical Association, 2005) Devanarayana, N.M.; de Silva, D.G.H.; de Silva, H.J.
    OBJECTIVES: Recurrent abdominal pain (RAP) syndrome is defined as "at least three bouts of abdominal pain, severe enough to affect activities, over a period of not less than three months". The prevalence of RAP syndrome among Sri Lankan children was unknown and the main objective of this study was to detect it. Methods: Questionnaires were distributed to a randomly selected sample of school children, aged between 5 to 15 years, from 4 randomly selected schools in the Gampaha district. RAP was defined according to Apley's criteria, a percentage of children fulfilling these criteria were interviewed and prevalence was adjusted accordingly. RESULTS: A total of 810 questionnaires were distributed and 734 (90.6%) were returned. There were 432 (46.6%) males and 392 (53.4%) females. The prevalence of RAP was 10.5% (9.6% in males and 11.2% in females). The highest prevalence was seen in children aged between 10 and 11 years and the mean age was 10.6years (SD 2.6years). RAP was significantly higher among children who were exposed to at least one stressful life event during past 6 months (p<0.0001) and who had a family history of RAP (p<0.000l). There were no associations between RAP and total family income, family size, father's alcohol consumption and having a working mother. CONCLUSIONS: Recurrent abdominal pain syndrome of childhood is a common problem in Sri Lanka affecting 10.5% of school children. RAP was higher in children who were exposed to emotional stress and who had a family history suggestive of the condition.
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    Abdominal pain predominant functional gastrointestinal diseases in children and adolescents: prevalence, symptomatology and association with emotional stress
    (Sri Lanka Medical Association, 2011) Devanarayana, N.M.; Mettananda, S.; Rajindrajith, S.
    INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: To assess the prevalence of abdominal pain predominant functional gastrointestinal diseases (FGD) in Sri Lankan children, their symptomatology, and predisposing factors. METHODS: A cross sectional survey was conducted among a randomly selected group of 10-16 year olds, in 8 randomly selected schools, in 4 provinces in Sri Lanka. A validated, self-administered questionnaire was distributed in an examination setting. Research assistants were present while filling the questionnaire and explanations were given. FGD Were Diagnosed using Rome III criteria. RESULTS: A total of 2180 questionnaires were distributed and 2163 (99.2%) were included in the analysis [1189 (55%) males, mean age 13.4 years, SD 1.8 years]. Seventeen incompletely filled questionnaires were excluded. Two hundred and seventy (12.5%) had at least one abdominal pain predominant FGD. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) was seen in 107 (4.9%), functional dyspepsia (FD) in 54 (2.5%), functional abdominal pain in 96 (4.4%) and abdominal migraine (AM) in 21 (1.0%) (2 had AM and FD, 6 had AM and IBS). Extraintestinal somatic symptoms (headache, limb pain, sleeping difficulty) were more common among affected children (p<0.05). Abdominal pain predominant FGD were significantly higher in girls and those exposed to stressful events (p<0.05). Prevalence negatively correlated with age. CONCLUSION: Abdominal pain predominant FGD were a significant health problem in Sri Lankan children affecting 12.5%. IBS was the commonest FGD diagnosed. Abdominal pain predominant FGD were higher in girls and those exposed to emotional stress. Prevalence of FGD decreased with age. Somatic symptoms were more frequent in affected children.