Founded in 1992 United European Gastroenterology (UEG) is the leading non-profit organisation for excellence in digestive health in Europe and beyond with its headquarters in Vienna. We improve the prevention and care of digestive diseases in Europe through providing top tier education, supporting research and advancing clinical standards.
As Europe’s home for multidisciplinary gastroenterology, we unite over 50,000 engaged professionals from national and specialist societies, individual digestive health experts and related scientists from all fields. With our innovative online platform, the myUEG Community, we enable digestive health professionals from across the globe to connect and benefit from a plethora of outstanding free resources and educational activities.
Our offers include UEG Week, our annual congress, online and face-to-face educational experiences, research support, a scientific journal and a range of opportunities in the form of fellowships and grants. We provide numerous guidelines, standards and quality improvement initiatives and campaign at the European level to ensure continued resources for research into digestive health while working closely with patient organisations.
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/cab_ueg_dr_riquellme_2.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-10-05 12:54:282024-03-14 10:03:59UEG WEEK – Dr. Riquelme, OPGE president, will be coordinator and speaker of the Symposium.
The Pan American Gastroenterology Organization (OPGE) is a scientific entity whose mission is to promote the development of Gastroenterology in the countries of the Americas in the broadest sense.
This is why we are very proud to invite you to visit our revamped website www.opge.org. In this MULTI-LANGUAGE opportunity, where you can navigate by selecting the Spanish, English and Portuguese languages.
Go to www.opge.org and find out about our online courses, who we are and current news that we have available for you.
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/nuevo_sitio_2022.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-09-21 15:35:542022-09-21 16:18:09We invite you to visit our renewed website
After a decade of the latest international consensus, the Spanish Association of Gastroenterology (AEG) invited various gastroenterology associations and OPGE specialists from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay, to publish at the beginning of 2023, a consensus to guide clinical practice in Ibero-America on the management of acute pancreatitis.
In 2021 and thanks to the initiative of Dr. Enrique Madaria, President of the Spanish Association of Gastroenterology (AEG), the initiative arose to carry out an Ibero-American Consensus on the management of Acute Pancreatitis, a mission that convened various associations, including: Spanish Association of Gastroenterology, Portuguese Society of Gastroenterology, Inter-American Society of Digestive Endoscopy (SIED) and Pan-American Organization of Gastroenterology (OPGE), with the purpose of developing a consensus that would serve as a guide for clinical practice in the Ibero-American Region.
According to Dr. Carla Mancilla A., OPGE Representative in the Ibero-American Consensus on the Management of Acute Pancreatitis: “Over the course of this year we have worked on the search for highly qualified specialists on the subject and on the development of the methodology that will be used in the consensus. It should be noted that OPGE will have specialists from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay.”
Acute Pancreatitis (AP) is a common disease and within the field of gastroenterology, one of the main causes of hospitalization. In Chile, annual discharges due to PA are close to 10,000 cases. Its severity is variable, being mild in 85% of cases. In these cases, only general management is necessary, prioritizing analgesia and hydration and the subsequent and prompt resolution of the causative pathology, which in most cases corresponds to gallbladder stone disease. However -in the opinion of Mancilla- in the remaining 15% the disease can evolve with serious local or systemic complications, requiring complex management in intensive care units and the use of endoscopic or radiological drainage methods that require hospital discharge. complexity with highly qualified specialists.
The variable characteristics of these patients in a frequent pathology endorse the realization of consensuses that allow guiding medical practices. The latest consensus dates back a decade and experience shows that even in highly complex centers, adherence to the recommendations is partial.
Currently and already defined the methodology of the Ibero-American Consensus for the management of Acute Pancreatitis, the work will begin by commissions with representatives of all the associations that will be in charge of answering specific questions regarding the management of AP based on the best evidence available in the literature. medical. “We hope to have the definitive document by the end of 2022, beginning of 2023. We are certain that this consensus document will represent a great contribution to medical practice in such dissimilar places in Ibero-America where the availability and access to resources can be very different. For On the other hand, we hope to contribute in terms of public health by offering a document that allows rationalizing therapies and the costs derived from them and reinforcing preventive cholecystectomy”, concluded Dr. Carla Mancilla.
The coordinators by Association for Consensus are responsible for the following:
Spanish Association of Gastroenterology: Dr. Enrique de Madaria
Spanish Association of Pancreatology: Dr. Emma Martínez
Portuguese Society of Gastroenterology: Dr. Miguel Bispo and Dr. Pedro Moutinho
SIED: Dr. Rodrigo Mansilla
OPGE: Dr. Carla Mancilla
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/pancreatitis_aguda.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-09-02 17:31:122022-09-02 17:31:13Development of Ibero-American Consensus on the Management of Acute Pancreatitis
Organized by the Chilean Society of Gastroenterology (SCHGE), the Chilean Association of Digestive Endoscopy (ACHED), the Inter-American Society of Digestive Endoscopy (SIED) and the Pan-American Organization of Gastroenterology (OPGE), with the sponsorship of the National Autonomous Certification Corporation of Medical Specialties (CONACEM); on August 1 begins the 2nd Course of Diagnostic and Therapeutic Endoscopic Techniques of Upper Digestive Endoscopy.
The course will last 23 academic hours and has 4 modules with scheduled dates for August 1, August 8, August 29 and September 5. The modality is entirely telematic and online.
Dr. Raúl Araya, a member of the Organizing Committee, states that this course is born from the success that the first course had in 2017 at a national and Latin American level. “At the time it was a contribution and we consider it an opportunity to develop this continuing education activity.This course has also allowed the integration and coordination of all the societies and associations already mentioned, which contributed as part of their objectives, with professionals and professors who pour their experience and updates under evidence in various conferences and classes “The main objective is to help with these tools in the training and education of gastroenterologists, surgeons and scholars, in diagnostic and therapeutic techniques of the upper digestive tract. For these reasons, we have great expectations and hope that the objectives set will be met,” he pointed out. .
On September 26, interesting SIED-OPGE conferences will also be given, such as: Be careful with the duodenum! Tips in the diagnosis and therapy of the duodenum, by Dr. Vitor Arantes (Brazil); Management of cystic lesions of the pancreas and pancreatic cancer, by Dr. Edson Guzmán (Peru); Diagnosis and treatment of early gastric cancer, by Dr. Miguel Ángel Tanimoto (Mexico); and State of the art in upper gastrointestinal bleeding, in diagnosis and therapy, by Dr. William Otero (Colombia).
Finally, on October 3, a Round Table on Ethics and Upper Endoscopy will be held, with the participation of Dr. María Ester Bufadel (Chile), Dr. Pablo Cortés (Chile) and Dr. Luis Caro (Argentina).
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/2do_curso.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-09-02 17:23:082022-09-02 17:23:112nd Course on Diagnostic and Therapeutic Endoscopic Techniques of Upper Digestive Endoscopy begins
Latin American experts applied an exhaustive evaluation of the range of diagnostic methods for this disease, which shows an increase in its incidence at a global and regional level, given the rise in rates of obesity and population aging. The consensus was recently published by the Revista Acta Gastroenterológica Latinoamericana.
With the support of the Pan American Gastroenterology Organization (OPGE), the American Society of Neurogastroenterology and Motility (ANMS) and several Latin American Gastroenterology Scientific Societies (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico) that appear in the writing, recently The Latin American Consensus on the Diagnosis of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) was published in the prestigious Journal Acta Gastroenterológica Latinoamericana.
The publication was made possible thanks to the hard work of a renowned group of Latin American experts and based on an exhaustive analysis of the best available evidence, and used the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) methodology, which allowed evaluating the quality of the evidence of 23 questions that cover the full range of diagnostic methods for GERD.
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) is a highly prevalent disorder in our region and its incidence has been increasing in recent years, along with the increase in overweight/obesity and the increase in population age. This pathology generates a deterioration in the quality of life of patients and important health expenses, being one of the most frequent reasons for consultation in gastroenterological clinical practice and its diagnosis is sometimes difficult.
According to Dr. Jorge Olmos, Head of the Neurogastroenterology section of the Hospital de Clínicas José de San Martín, University of Buenos Aires (Argentina), “Through significant technological advances in recent years, we have contributed to the development of an important improvement, both in the understanding of the physiopathogenic mechanisms as well as the diagnosis of GERD. We consider it of great importance that clinicians and gastroenterologists who treat this condition have knowledge of the appropriate use, correct interpretation, performance and limitations of diagnostic tests” .
In the same vein, Dr. Marcelo Vela, professor of medicine, Section of Esophageal Disorders, Director of the Advanced Residency in Diseases of the Esophagus, Mayo Clinic, Arizona (United States); He pointed out that “The strength of the recommendation of each body, included in this consensus, was submitted to the vote of the group of experts in a meeting centralized in the Argentine Society of Gastroenterology. We hope that this document will be useful in the practice of our specialty, in the countries of our region”.
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/concenso_latinoamericano.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-09-02 17:13:472022-09-02 17:13:48Latin American Consensus on the Diagnosis of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)
The Latin American Registry of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) seeks to eradicate the bacterium in the regional population and control its impact on patients with chronic gastritis and the potential development of gastric cancer. H. pylori eradication therapy has been shown to reduce the risk of gastric cancer in people with or without preneoplastic lesions such as gastric intestinal metaplasia.
After the success evidenced by the European Report on H. pylori, a joint effort seeks to replicate the study, this time with a focus on Latin America. The objective is to improve the health of patients by eradicating the H. pylori bacteria, in order to avoid undesirable health consequences, but directly related to chronic gastritis and potentially gastric cancer, thus reducing the costs derived from care in health and effectively implementing the consensus guidelines on clinical practice in the management of this infection.
For the global researcher of the project at an international level, Dr. Javier Gisbert (Spain), the European Registry “has not only been widely disseminated by specialized medical publications, but also has the support of a very important network at European and global level of gastroenterologists, who work on the management of this infection and which has also allowed, based on clinical experience, to identify the most common errors in clinical practice, common among European gastroenterologists, which allows identifying the margin for improvement in management of H. pylori to optimize adherence to current clinical guidelines.
For the specialist, the advantage of the European experience is that it transmits the know-how of the project at all levels, which allows a simple, direct replication and quick start-up in all the countries of the world.
It is estimated that about half of the world’s population is chronically infected with H. pylori and presents chronic non-atrophic gastritis in most cases. In some people, chronic gastritis can lead to the loss of the mucous glands (atrophy), to the replacement of the gastric epithelium by the intestinal one (gastric intestinal metaplasia and dysplasia). Additionally, Dr. Gisbert states that: “H. pylori eradication therapy has been shown to reduce the risk of gastric cancer in people with or without gastric intestinal metaplasia, in the absence of gastric neoplasia. Follow-up of patients with MIG It is a strategy that has proven to be profitable in different health models”.
In this sense, in June 2022 the European Registry on the management of H. pylori infection (Hp-EuReg) was published – available at http://hpeureg.com/ and promoted by the European Helicobacter and Microbiota Study Group ( EHMSG)-, whose purpose was to systematically evaluate the epidemiology, efficacy and safety of the great diversity of treatments to eradicate H. pylori, as well as obtain a more global vision on the management of infection by this bacterium, and thus implement the relevant consensus documents and clinical practice guidelines in the different countries; and to assess accessibility to health technologies and medications used in the management of this infection.
The registry currently includes more than 53,000 patients from 300 centers in 29 countries across Europe. The registry allows the direct analysis of the eradication trends of the different treatments, the adaptation of treatment protocols according to local resistance data, as well as the indirect calculation of the profitability of therapeutic schemes.
As a balance, Dr. Javier Gisbert points out that “despite the efforts made, in Europe there has been a 10% increase in the global eradication rate of first-line treatments since the start of the study in 2013. This type of pathological records constitute a very powerful tool used to audit H. pylori eradication treatments, resulting in improved clinical management of the infection and, subsequently, helping to reduce other undesirable consequences for health, such as the development of gastric cancer.
THE TURN OF OUR REGION
Latin America is already working on its version of the registry and in this sense, under the leadership of Dr. Arnoldo Riquelme himself (Researcher responsible for the development of the Latin American Registry for the management of H. pylori infection (Hp LATAM Reg) together with the project coordinator ( Dr. Diego Reyes), with the support of Dr. Javier Gisbert and Dr. Leticia Moreira, representatives of several gastroenterology scientific societies, already share their first impressions:
Argentina “For almost a year now, Argentina has been developing an Argentine Registry of H. pylori. For us, the Registry project (Hp LATAM Reg) led by Dr. Arnoldo Riquelme (Chile) is key. On the one hand, the support and ideas of He has been very valuable to start our Registry and also the possibility of entering the registry, with the particularity that the data will have according to the regions and countries.Likewise, in Argentina it is the possibility of starting to think about collaborative multicenter projects and integrating ourselves in the different Centers and Hospitals and I understand that Hp LATAM Reg is oriented towards this objective.
I do not want to fail to mention the European registry, which has been our model to follow. The possibility of having our own data to add to the LATAM Registry is invaluable, giving relevance to “Real World Evidence” and our expectation of incorporation opens up significant opportunities for us to start collaborative projects.
Currently 240 patients with complete eradication data are included. Centers from Buenos Aires and from different provinces such as Santa Fe, Córdoba, Jujuy and Mendoza participate. To date, several Centers are finishing their Regulatory stage in the Ethics Committee to enter.
Dr. Oscar Laudanno, Head of the Gastroenterology Department of the Alfredo Lanari Medical Research Institute, at the University of Buenos Aires
Mexico “Currently, Mexico has a population of 128 million inhabitants and it is estimated that after the age of 18, between 60 and 70% of this population are carriers of H. pylori. Thus, we are a population with a high prevalence of the infection and although it has been reduced (in the 1990s it was close to 80%), it is still considered a relevant health problem.In recent years, resistance to the triple eradication scheme (amoxicillin-clarithromycin- proton pump inhibitor) has become relevant, since its effectiveness is less than 70%, which together with the high prevalence form an adverse combination that affects the health of our population.
The fact that Mexico is integrated into the Hp LATAM Reg registry will allow a better understanding of how H. pylori infection behaves (from the clinical, biological and antimicrobial susceptibility point of view) in the different regions of our country and be able to compare it with the rest of Latin America. We firmly believe that this initiative will help define health policies and strategies that have served in other countries and adapt it to our reality. It will also allow the establishment of scientific and technological ties between the region, which is why we are undoubtedly convinced of the importance of projects such as the Hp LATAM Reg Registry. At the moment we are in the committee approval phase, but we hope to be able to start in the following months. actively”.
Dr. José María Remes Troche, Director of the Biological Medical Research Institute of the Veracruzana University. Veracruz Mexico.
Colombia
“Colombia has a population of approximately 51 million inhabitants. The prevalence of H. pylori infection is estimated to be 60% in the adult population. The resistance found in H. pylori to different antibiotics is as follows: amoxicillin < 2%, tetracycline 2%, clarithromycin 25%, levofloxacin 27%, metronidazole >80%.Cure rates of infection with triple for 10 days, with clarithromycin (Amoxicillin 1 g twice daily, clarithromycin 500 mg twice daily day + proton pump inhibitor) is 71%, with levofloxacin 75%, with levofloxacin + clarithromycin 79%, overall 76%. All these cure rates are below 80%, being unacceptable. In the 90s the success of triple therapies was ≥90%.
The prevalence of rapid or ultra-rapid metabolizers of PPIs is 80%. Therefore, at our National University, we only use esomeprazole because it is minimally influenced by the type of metabolizer.
For us it is very important to be part of the Hp LATAM Hp registry for all that this implies for our continent and for the future to be able to carry out studies of the “real world” and as a continent; progressively identify the most effective therapies for each country or region. We agree with Professor Remes-Troche, that it will be a magnificent opportunity to unite scientifically and technologically. Also at the moment we are in the process of approval of the protocol by the ethics committees.”
William Otero Regino, Full Professor of Medicine, Coordinator of Gastroenterology at the National University of Colombia, National University Hospital of Colombia.
Peru
“We have recently started the call and we hope to start collecting data shortly. This registry is extremely important in Peru because we have a high prevalence of H. pylori, close to 80% of the general population, and additionally, a high incidence of stomach cancer, which is the cancer with the highest lethality in our country.The relationship between H. pylori and stomach cancer has been recognized for several years and one of the strategies that needs to be implemented is the eradication of H. pylori, to This, the registry and its subsequent study of resistance, will be of vital importance since they will allow knowing real data from different regions of the country and will help to design programs adapted to each region and make them more efficient.
Our expectations are very high and having the support of OPGE in the organization and experience of the European Registry of H. pylori will be of great help to achieve a greater objective, which is to improve the quality of life of our population.”
Alejandro Piscoya, Chief of Gastroenterology at Hospital Guillermo Kaelin de la Fuente, Chair of Guidelines Committee, World Gastroenterology Organization, Vice President/Vicepresident of the Society of Gastroenterology of Peru. President-elect of OPGE (period 2022-2025)
Chili
“The truth is that the Hp LATAM Reg project comes to life from the generosity of Dr. Javier Gisbert and later, with the push of Dr. Leticia Moreira, current coordinator of the European project, who have had the vision of the importance of expanding the development of registries in other continents. Due to the idiopathic closeness and the friendship that has been generated over the years with Spanish researchers from the Spanish Association of Gastroenterology (AEG), we have been able to materialize the development of this project, which starts in Chile with 100 recruited patients, where the high response rate to quadruple scheme with high doses of proton pump inhibitors, amoxicillin and metronidazole associated with bismuth subsalicylate (97% efficacy), compared to schemes based on clarithromycin (In Santiago de Chile, resistance to clarithromycin is 30%). This type of experience can be disseminated and shared with other Latin American countries to improve our clinical practices. This project is of low complexity and can help us create a research culture so that in the future we can develop other more ambitious collaborative projects such as the study of resistance to antibiotics (Hp RESLA), under OPGE, since we have excellent researchers on the continent and the next president of OPGE is Dr. Alejandro Piscoya from Peru, so we can create a long-term agenda that allows us to generate new knowledge from the continent. We hope to have preliminary results to be presented at the Pan American Digestive Disease Weeks (SPED) between October 8 and 11, 2023 in Santiago, Chile.”
Dr. Arnoldo Riquelme, Department of Gastroenterology, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. President of OPGE (period 2021-2023)
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/helicobacter.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-09-02 16:52:392022-09-02 16:52:40Registry of Helicobacter pylori: Now it is the turn of Latin America
Although there is still a year to go before he assumes the presidency of the Pan American Gastroenterology Organization (OPGE), Dr. Piscoya is already participating in a series of activities that will help raise the health realities of our specialty in the region, as well as maintain a presence America in international spaces that seek to improve the training of gastroenterologists and endoscopists for a more timely diagnosis.
With a smile and a cadence that is not consistent with the positions and the agenda he has, Dr. Alejandro Piscoya tells us about his view of the education and training of the new generations of gastroenterologists and endoscopists in Latin America, and of the challenges that he hopes to address in the OPGE starting next year.
Dr. Alejandro Piscoya, vice president of the Society of Gastroenterology of Peru, Head of Gastroenterology at Hospital Guillermo Kaelin de la Fuente and editor of the Journal of Gastroenterology of Peru, is an eminence in education in this subspecialty and although he humbly comments that almost “accidentally” obtained a study scholarship in La Paz, Bolivia, through the Medical College of Peru; Only then did he learn about a learning opportunity that the Japanese Bolivian Institute of Gastroenterology (IGBJ) called at the time, thanks to the support of the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Piscoya explains that when he attended his first training course at this center, one of the most prestigious in the world, he never thought he would have access not only to the latest technology, but also to become an apprentice to the most erudite endoscopists.
“It was the third year that, thanks to a WGO agreement, training scholarships were awarded. I remember that the fact of having two intensive weeks of training with young specialists from all over Latin America, Central America and even Mexico seemed very attractive. Beyond the technique, I found it a very enriching experience to share and exchange realities about the gastroenterology approach”.
The specialist highlights that the experience also constituted a unique instance to learn how countries faced diagnoses such as celiac disease, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) and gastric cancer. “In addition to building bonds of friendship, it was an opportunity to investigate in depth and to learn in a very participatory way,” says Dr. Piscoya.
Since then, Alejandro has spent more than 20 years dedicated to the training of gastroenterology specialists, at a time when he is grateful for the end of a period in which education was very vertical and authoritarian. “Today we are experiencing a huge change in the paradigm of medical education. The teacher exchanges opinions with his apprentices and that exercise in itself constitutes learning. A wonderful feedback based on humility is generated to teach, to recognize mistakes, to correct and learn “, says the vice president of the Society of Gastroenterology of Peru.
Hoy en día los cursos internacionales congregan a diversas generaciones de especialistas de la gastroenterología y la endoscopía provenientes de Europa, Japón y Estados Unidos. Parte de las actividades incluyen procedimientos que permiten entrenar habilidades y retroalimentar conocimientos de formadores y de aprendices. “Bajo la iniciativa Train The Trainers (TTT) de la WGO, además se incluyen cursos de docencia, en los que aprendemos a enseñar. Y es que no basta con saber de medicina, es muy importante saber enseñar a profesionales adultos, utilizar las tecnologías y saber reconocer los aspectos importantes de una investigación o una publicación médica internacional”. Piscoya recuerda que en sus inicios, el Dr. Roque Sáenz (Chile), por ejemplo, observó que había una dificultad con el inglés en la docencia, ello considerando el lenguaje técnico propio de la especialidad. “Una cosa es enseñar sobre endoscopías, pero en la docencia es más complicado para quienes no somos nativos. Así nació un programa piloto de entrenamiento docente en español, una experiencia muy útil que permitió anticipar dificultades”, añade.
Con orgullo, el Dr. Piscoya comenta que en el año 2013, alcanzaron una aprobación del 95% en la calidad docente, un estándar muy superior a la media. El especialista asegura que este ejercicio de bajar al docente desde un pedestal históricamente infalible, hizo sin duda de la educación un proceso más eficiente, útil y enriquecedor con beneficio doble, tanto para el educador como para el aprendiz. “Acostumbrado a las jerarquías del ecosistema educacional, viví en primera persona el impacto positivo de otro modelo de educación y formación práctica. Debemos partir por reconocer que somos seres falibles y hay que aprender a reconocer los desfaces con las nuevas generaciones, aceptando que la evidencia está al alcance de todos. En 25 años de experiencia profesional, uno puede haber visto 1000 pacientes y la evidencia te provee la experiencia de 25 mil pacientes. Eso es indiscutible y debemos valorar el trabajo de otros”.
Como miembro de la Academia de Educadores de la American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), el Dr. Piscoya reconoce que nunca se termina de aprender. “Uno como médico lee toda la vida y aprendemos a revisar acuciosamente la metodología de las investigaciones, incluso más allá de los resultados. Si el método falla, no se pueden corregir los errores. Sabemos que incluso reconocidas publicaciones médicas y científicas cometen errores y es importante transmitir este tipo de fallas a los alumnos, para que así aprendan a ser más rigurosos como investigadores y como lectores”.
Alejandro se sonríe al momento de hacer un balance de su historia como educador y concluye: “Tengo la convicción de que la distancia daña la capacidad de enseñar. No es bueno aprender con miedo. Lo más provechoso es trabajar juntos en una mesa y alimentar una relación horizontal entre educador y aprendiz. Las nuevas generaciones son muy digitales y tienen mucho que enseñarnos, ya que somos migrantes digitales. Ambos aprendemos de nuestros aciertos y más aún de nuestros errores. Este desafío permanente me obliga a sumergirme en los procesos analíticos y reflexivos de mis alumnos, para detectar el error y corregir a tiempo”.
Al cierre de esta entrevista, es imposible abstraerse del contexto de la pandemia. Al consultar al Dr. Alejandro Piscoya acerca del impacto del COVID en Perú, él explica: “Al igual que todos, hemos sido golpeados por esta enfermedad. Este escenario dejó al descubierto la realidad de nuestra salud pública. Somos un país emergente que ha crecido en los últimos 20 años y muchos salieron de la pobreza, pero ello no se ha traducido en mejores instituciones, salud y educación. La economía acaparó la atención por mucho tiempo y la pandemia desnudó las inequidades. No tuvimos las herramientas para responder a esta enfermedad, desde el número de camas y ventiladores hasta el capital humano formado para responder a las exigencias. Si bien, rápidamente pudimos mejorar la infraestructura, las personas no se pueden formar rápidamente, lo que puso en valor la importancia de la formación especializada. Debemos resolver la escasez de gastroenterólogos que manejen patologías y sepan procedimientos. La mitad del país no tiene acceso a especialistas de gastroenterología y más de la mitad de nuestros hospitales están en Lima. A ello se suma que nuestros especialistas en endoscopía avanzada se van a Bolivia, Colombia y Argentina, y esa fuga de capital humano valioso debe ser recaptado, ya que nuestro país estamos llegando 10 a 15 años tarde al diagnóstico oportuno de nuestros cánceres digestivos, sin considerar que el cáncer de colon -otrora considerado enfermedad del tercer mundo- hoy está entre los “top 10″ de los cánceres generales y aún no contamos con un programa de prevención”.
La OPGE hoy tiene un asiento en el comité de la WGO y según el Dr. Alejandro Piscoya, este espacio permitirá canalizar preocupaciones y desafíos propios de nuestra región.
Latinoamérica cuenta con centros de formación que nos permitirán mejorar la precisión y la oportunidad en el diagnóstico y para hacer esto realidad, es determinante mejorar el grupo de entrenadores que construyen los peldaños que nos permitirán ascender en esta ruta de perfeccionamiento.
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Piscoya.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-09-02 16:27:012022-09-02 16:27:02Dr. Alejandro Piscoya from Peru, in charge of the WGO Scientific Committee for Clinical Guidelines and future president of OPGE 2023: “We are experiencing a huge change in the paradigm of medical education”
Carolina proudly confesses to being a Latin American gastroenterologist and recognizes herself as a lover of this specialty. Professor of medicine at the University of the Republic of Uruguay, today assumes as secretary general of the World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO), confirming her commitment to the fair development of quality medicine accessible from the regions of the Americas, Africa and Middle East, Europe and Asia Pacific.
Coming from the interior of Uruguay, from a town called Vergara, Carolina Olano grew up in a middle-class family and a lot of effort, as she describes it. The daughter of a teacher mother and banker father, she was educated along with her sister with clear values and principles, forging respect for others and appreciation for effort and dedication, as a daily task that always brings rewards in life. She comments between laughs that her mother assures that she wanted to be a doctor since she was 6 years old, a decision that she never doubted, and that only involved other choices when choosing her subspecialty, when at the beginning of her career she was blinded by Surgery. Remember that he had a mentor and great master of surgery in those years, with a great storytelling ability and that he used to tell them mythological legends such as “Laocconte” and this battle that a Trojan priest and his twin sons waged against sea serpents, making the allusion to the fight of the surgeon, with the help of the endoscopist and the radiologist, against the disease. Today Carolina assures that history would probably be different, since in a collaborative dynamic, with no specialist being more important than another, gastroenterologists and endoscopists wage a very professional battle in the fight against digestive pathologies.
Dr. Olano was president of the Uruguayan Society of Gastroenterology a few years ago, and she also has a long history at OPGE. Although today she assumes the post of secretary general of the WGO, her history in this place is as long as in the academy, where she is still the only professor of gastroenterology at her house of studies, the University of the Republic.
How do you assume this new commitment within WGO? This position for me is a challenge and a high honor, since it is an organization that brings together 117 member societies, representing more than 60,000 gastroenterologists and that has welcomed professionals of the highest level, representing the 4 most important regions of the globe: The Americas, Africa and the Middle East, Europe and Asia Pacific. I also feel very proud to hold this position as a professional Latin American woman, which commits me to channel and represent the concerns of the union and gender, in terms of all the countries that WGO represents, in addition to considering other aspects of current affairs as is the post-pandemic and the war in Ukraine. In this first stage, I not only hope to follow the guidelines of our president at WGO, Dr. Guilherme Macedo, but also continue with the work of inclusion of women in gastroenterology and enable spaces that allow them to access leadership positions and the promotion of development of the female professional career, identifying all types of open or covert discrimination.
In addition to the efforts in terms of gender equity, what are the challenges in WGO? Another big challenge is climate change. Migration and the appearance of new infectious diseases in areas most affected by climate change are a current concern in our directive. We seek to collect the needs in a timely manner, learning from the inequities that the pandemic uncovered in 2020 and 2021.
Another important aspect of our work plan is education, and for this we will continue with the TTT program, Train the Trainers, which also includes the development of soft skills such as teamwork, group discussion, adult education, communication techniques, and other more leadership-oriented components. For that, we hope to focus on the most vulnerable regions and with fewer specialists in order to facilitate access to training in endoscopy and hepatology, among others. Along these same lines, a program aimed at young people was recently created, associated with leadership, which will help them conduct their careers based on their stated objectives and includes remote tutoring, so that together we can help them design their roadmap, considering the conditioning factors that determine it and taking advantage of the WGO’s instruments and networks, with a strong motivational component.
Carolina feels fulfilled as a woman and professional. Married to a lawyer and mother of two children, a communications sciences student (22 years old) and a basketball player studying business administration (19), she comments that she still cultivates traditions very typical of rural family life, and is very attentive to the formation of good people. Likewise, as an academic of the Faculty of Medicine, she treasures the instances of conversation with the new generations, insisting on the vocation of service and humanity in the treatment of the patient, especially at times when we give bad news.
“It is so important to shake hands or caress the patient who suffers or who experiences fear or uncertainty. I would not want our doctors to lose those skills that are as powerful as knowledge or good treatment. In the same way, I try to convey to them that effort is the requirement that prevails in every project that is undertaken, as well as the determination not to abandon our purpose.The patient is not a set of organs, he is a human being who feels and that we must keep at the center of our daily work “, he concludes.
Review: Dr. Olano is Professor Director of the Department of Gastroenterology at the University of the Republic, Montevideo, Uruguay. She graduated in medicine (MD) from the University of the Republic, Montevideo, Uruguay in 1993 and obtained a postgraduate degree in Gastroenterology from the same university in 1996. She completed her training in gastrointestinal endoscopy at the Gastroenterology Clinic and associated public hospitals in Montevideo. After an internship at the department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Infectious Diseases at the Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Germany in 2008, she specialized in video capsule endoscopy and enteroscopy.
She has shown a deep interest in university education, achieving in 2010 a master’s degree (M Sc (Ed)) at a private university in Montevideo (Universidad ORT). Dr. Olano participates in educational activities of the World Gastroenterology Organization, has been part of the faculty of the Spanish TTT program and was a member of the working groups of the guidelines for IBS and celiac disease. She is the current Secretary General of the WGO, after stepping down as Chairman of its Scientific Committee. She has held various positions in the Uruguayan Society of Gastroenterology, including President, Secretary and President of International Affairs.
Her main areas of interest include intestinal diseases and medical education.
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/carolina_olano.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-09-02 16:18:552022-09-02 16:18:56Dr. Carolina Olano, Secretary General World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO): Gender equality, climate change and education will be priorities for the WGO
In a quite intimate conversation, Dr. Eduardo Gutiérrez Galiana welcomes us with a book in his hands, which was prepared by his father (Dr. Horacio Gutiérrez Blanco) that contains 120 biographical reviews on Exemplary Uruguayan Doctors, and after rereading the dedication from his father addressed to him in 1989, he feels that precisely that message gave him more energy to continue working for the OPGE in years as difficult as the last two, in the context of a pandemic. The World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO) has just distinguished Dr. Eduardo Gutiérrez Galiana, for his leadership, dedication and commitment as a member of the OPGE Governing Council in his 2018-2021 period.
This remarkable speaker of our subspecialty of medicine, he comes from a family with a long history in gastroenterology and digestive endoscopy. In fact, his father was an emeritus professor at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of the Republic of Uruguay, a founding member in 1946 of the Latin American Association of Gastroenterology, which would later become the Inter-American Association of Gastroenterology (AIGE), and from From 2016 it was renamed OPGE, and President of the Latin American Association of Coloproctology (ALACP) during the years 1962-1963. Likewise, his older brother Horacio and his nephew Juan Pablo also chose his professional vocation for gastroenterology and digestive endoscopy.
The arrival of COVID undoubtedly shook various spaces of society and humanity. Along with this and presiding over the OPGE, Gutiérrez Galiana recalls that it was an intense period of changing decisions that put various activities in check, including the Pan American Congress of Gastroenterology. “I feel that the pandemic strengthened us in many ways. On the one hand, we learned about the advantages of remote telecommunications, opening the opportunity for many more people to participate, and on the other hand, it fueled the need to empower and unite even more as an organization and community. Very nice and significant gestures were given that strengthened our ties in the Pan-American region, as well as worldwide.”
In a totally virtual modality, the congress was held in July 2021, registering a total of 2,242 participants from 40 countries and exhibitors from the 22 countries of the Americas that are members of OPGE, as well as representatives from several countries in Africa, Asia and Europe, such as Morocco, Egypt, Spain, Germany, England, Ireland, Poland, Italy, Japan, Austria, Portugal, France, China, Holland and Belgium, among others. We also had the participation of 220 professors from 34 countries, and 37 Associations and Organizations of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy from around the world, who were present at different symposiums and courses in the specialty. The meeting lasted for 3 days, and had 4 parallel rooms in which 457 conferences were given, and 123 research papers were submitted.
Dr. Gutiérrez Galiana points out: “The virtual modality showed important advantages to share teachings with a wide audience and facilitate access to participants from all over the world, who valued the teaching aspect of this format of activities. Surely the hybrid modality will continue to be It is important to note that last year we awarded 3 prizes to the best scientific papers presented at the congress, calling them: Prof. Dr. Elbio Zeballos prize, Prof. Dr. Luis Alberto Boerr prize and Prof. Dr. Horacio Gutiérrez Blanco, and 3 new Masters of Pan American Gastroenterology were appointed: Professors Dr. Elena Fosman from Uruguay, Dr. Sheila Crowe from the USA and Dr. Miguel Ángel Valdovinos from Mexico.
Together with the XXXVII Pan-American Congress of Gastroenterology, the XX Uruguayan Congress of Gastroenterology and the X Uruguayan Congress of Digestive Endoscopy were held, whose presidents were Drs. Virginia López and Federico De Simone, respectively. Gutiérrez Galiana highlighted the importance of the enormous collaborative work of the 22 Associations and Organizations of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy of the Americas that are members of OPGE, and in addition to 15 of the main Associations of the specialty from the rest of the world, who participated in the congress carrying out various activities. , highlighting the Symposium of the Americas where all the member associations of OPGE participated, the Symposium of the World Organization of Gastroenterology WGO, chaired by its president Prof. Dr. Naima Amrani, the distinguished conference of the WGO given by Prof. Dr. Richard Kozarek, the Symposium of the European Union of Gastroenterology UEG, the Symposium of the American College of Gastroenterology ACG, the Symposium of the American Association of Gastroenterology AGA, the Symposium of the Latin American Association for the Study of the Liver ALEH, the Symposium of the Pan American Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis Organization PANCCO, the Symposium of the Latin American Society of Neurogastroenterology, the Symposium of the Mc Master University of Canada, the Symposium of the Spanish Society of Digestive Pathology SEPD, the Symposium of the Spanish Association of Gastroenterology AEG, the Symposium of the Rome Foundation, the Symposium of the Spanish Group for the Study of Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis GETECCU, among others. “Nothing achieved could have been done without the work and dedicated commitment of the Scientific Commission of the congress, since virtuality allowed us to focus on the performance of the virtual event perfectly. To do this, all the presentations were recorded and delivered previously , in order to comply with the planned times, and only connect the exhibitors for the rounds of questions and discussion”, adds the former president of OPGE.
During his period and thanks to the collaborative effort of essential scientific and administrative teams, as he points out, courses were held on Upper and Lower Digestive Tube, and Hepatology (2019 and 2020). 15 Webinar seminars have also been developed since 2019 together with the American College of Gastroenterology ACG, an organization with which an important link was consolidated. He highlights that he was fundamental during the entire period at the head of OPGE, the invaluable support received by the World Gastroenterology Organization WGO.
“From the OPGE, the existence of this organization dedicated to the development of knowledge in gastroenterology and digestive endoscopy in America is fundamental, and teamwork is very important. There is a before and after the pandemic and I think we have reaped a lot of learning that forces us to to continue advancing and perfecting ourselves. When you work with love and in a group there are no limits and without a doubt we can build synergies and a virtuous circle that allows us to grow and feed each other as a community. My thanks go out for having been part of this wonderful process”, he concludes Dr. Eduardo Gutiérrez Galiana.
OPGE Directive 2018-2021: Eduardo Gutierrez Galiana – President (Uruguay) Javier San Martin – Vice President (Uruguay) José Pedro Ibargoyen – Secretary General (Uruguay) Ana Laura Rodríguez – Treasurer (Uruguay) Juan Pablo Gutiérrez Aguiar – Deputy Secretary (Uruguay) Virginia González – Pro-Treasurer (Uruguay) Edgardo Smecuol – Executive Secretary (Argentina) María Deambrosio – Administrative Secretary (Uruguay)
OPGE Scientific and Education Commission: Horacio Gutierrez Galiana (Uruguay) Edgardo Smecuol (Argentina) Richard Kozarek (USA) Arnoldo Riquelme (Chile) OPGE Research and Publications Commission: David Carr-Locke (USA) Thomas Kroner (USA)
Commission of Past-Presidents of OPGE: Julio Cesar Bai (Argentina) Luis Carlos Sabbagh (Colombia) Jose Roberto de Almeida (Brazil)
Scientific Commission of the XXXVII Pan American Congress of Gastroenterology: José Pedro Ibargoyen (President of the Scientific Commission of the Pan American Congress) (Uruguay) Carla Bianchi (Uruguay) Cristina Dacoll (Uruguay) Federico De Simone (Uruguay) Nicolas Gonzalez (Uruguay) Juan Pablo Gutierrez Aguiar (Uruguay) Horacio Gutierrez Galiana (Uruguay) Beatriz Iade (Uruguay) Susan Kohen (Uruguay) Thomas Kroner (USA) Virginia Lopez (Uruguay) Klaus Monkemuller (Germany) Carolina Olano (Uruguay) Yessica Pontet (Uruguay) Adriana Raggio (Uruguay) Elena Trucco (Uruguay)
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/pandemis_galiana_2022-1.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-09-01 18:48:332022-09-01 18:49:00Dr. Eduardo Gutiérrez Galiana, president of the OPGE period 2018-2021: “I feel that the pandemic strengthened us in many ways”
Digestive Disease Week (DDW) is an attractive event aimed at gastroenterologists from around the world, many of whom come from Spanish-speaking countries. A few years ago, the American Gastroenterology Association (AGA) included the session called “The Best of DDW in Spanish”, which seeks to spread the best of its days to its audience.
For “The Best of DDW in Spanish”, this year AGA has invited 5 experts in different subjects of our discipline, among them: Dr. Arnoldo Riquelme (Chile), Dr. Rodrigo Jover (Spain), Dr. Mario Pelaez Luna (Mexico), Dr. Sonia Niveloni (Argentina) and Dr. Fabián Emura (Colombia), who will discuss valuable information on gastric disorders, colorectal cancer, pancreatic disease, celiac disease and endoscopy.
This interesting session will be led by Professor Dr. Carolina Olano, Secretary General of the World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO) and Dr. Edgardo Smecuol (Honorary Secretary of the Pan American Gastroenterology Organization (OPGE). The appointment is for Tuesday, May 24 , between 2:00 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. (Pacific time: GMT-7), at the San Diego Convention Center (Room 11), and those who are registered for DDW can access it both in person and online.
In the opinion of Dr. Edgardo Smecuol, “This space in Spanish is very important for our community of specialists attending the congress to get a clear message and in our language. This symposium will address 5 topics along with references from each specialty. For several years “The Best of DDW” had exhibitors who spoke Spanish but lived in the United States, and about 5 years ago some members of OPGE tried to give it a more Latin American imprint, so that they are not only Spanish speakers, but also referents of throughout the region, most of them being leaders of OPGE member societies”.
With more than a decade of experience, this space allows updating on the latest advances addressed in the congress, but it also constitutes a significant instance of camaraderie among members of our organization.
https://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/ddw_2022-1.jpg5851030admin_opgehttps://www.opge.org/portal/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Logo_Opge_2022.svgadmin_opge2022-09-01 18:41:152022-09-01 18:41:16We are waiting for you at this important event: “The best of DDW 2022 in Spanish”
UEG WEEK – Dr. Riquelme, OPGE president, will be coordinator and speaker of the Symposium.
11 am (Vienna time, GMT+2)
His topic: gastric cancer.
UEG-OPGE Symposium: Hot Topics from Latin America
About UEG WEEK
Founded in 1992 United European Gastroenterology (UEG) is the leading non-profit organisation for excellence in digestive health in Europe and beyond with its headquarters in Vienna. We improve the prevention and care of digestive diseases in Europe through providing top tier education, supporting research and advancing clinical standards.
As Europe’s home for multidisciplinary gastroenterology, we unite over 50,000 engaged professionals from national and specialist societies, individual digestive health experts and related scientists from all fields. With our innovative online platform, the myUEG Community, we enable digestive health professionals from across the globe to connect and benefit from a plethora of outstanding free resources and educational activities.
Our offers include UEG Week, our annual congress, online and face-to-face educational experiences, research support, a scientific journal and a range of opportunities in the form of fellowships and grants. We provide numerous guidelines, standards and quality improvement initiatives and campaign at the European level to ensure continued resources for research into digestive health while working closely with patient organisations.
We invite you to visit our renewed website
The Pan American Gastroenterology Organization (OPGE) is a scientific entity whose mission is to promote the development of Gastroenterology in the countries of the Americas in the broadest sense.
This is why we are very proud to invite you to visit our revamped website www.opge.org. In this MULTI-LANGUAGE opportunity, where you can navigate by selecting the Spanish, English and Portuguese languages.
Go to www.opge.org and find out about our online courses, who we are and current news that we have available for you.
Development of Ibero-American Consensus on the Management of Acute Pancreatitis
After a decade of the latest international consensus, the Spanish Association of Gastroenterology (AEG) invited various gastroenterology associations and OPGE specialists from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay, to publish at the beginning of 2023, a consensus to guide clinical practice in Ibero-America on the management of acute pancreatitis.
In 2021 and thanks to the initiative of Dr. Enrique Madaria, President of the Spanish Association of Gastroenterology (AEG), the initiative arose to carry out an Ibero-American Consensus on the management of Acute Pancreatitis, a mission that convened various associations, including: Spanish Association of Gastroenterology, Portuguese Society of Gastroenterology, Inter-American Society of Digestive Endoscopy (SIED) and Pan-American Organization of Gastroenterology (OPGE), with the purpose of developing a consensus that would serve as a guide for clinical practice in the Ibero-American Region.
According to Dr. Carla Mancilla A., OPGE Representative in the Ibero-American Consensus on the Management of Acute Pancreatitis: “Over the course of this year we have worked on the search for highly qualified specialists on the subject and on the development of the methodology that will be used in the consensus. It should be noted that OPGE will have specialists from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay.”
Acute Pancreatitis (AP) is a common disease and within the field of gastroenterology, one of the main causes of hospitalization. In Chile, annual discharges due to PA are close to 10,000 cases. Its severity is variable, being mild in 85% of cases. In these cases, only general management is necessary, prioritizing analgesia and hydration and the subsequent and prompt resolution of the causative pathology, which in most cases corresponds to gallbladder stone disease. However -in the opinion of Mancilla- in the remaining 15% the disease can evolve with serious local or systemic complications, requiring complex management in intensive care units and the use of endoscopic or radiological drainage methods that require hospital discharge. complexity with highly qualified specialists.
The variable characteristics of these patients in a frequent pathology endorse the realization of consensuses that allow guiding medical practices. The latest consensus dates back a decade and experience shows that even in highly complex centers, adherence to the recommendations is partial.
Currently and already defined the methodology of the Ibero-American Consensus for the management of Acute Pancreatitis, the work will begin by commissions with representatives of all the associations that will be in charge of answering specific questions regarding the management of AP based on the best evidence available in the literature. medical.
“We hope to have the definitive document by the end of 2022, beginning of 2023. We are certain that this consensus document will represent a great contribution to medical practice in such dissimilar places in Ibero-America where the availability and access to resources can be very different. For On the other hand, we hope to contribute in terms of public health by offering a document that allows rationalizing therapies and the costs derived from them and reinforcing preventive cholecystectomy”, concluded Dr. Carla Mancilla.
The coordinators by Association for Consensus are responsible for the following:
2nd Course on Diagnostic and Therapeutic Endoscopic Techniques of Upper Digestive Endoscopy begins
Organized by the Chilean Society of Gastroenterology (SCHGE), the Chilean Association of Digestive Endoscopy (ACHED), the Inter-American Society of Digestive Endoscopy (SIED) and the Pan-American Organization of Gastroenterology (OPGE), with the sponsorship of the National Autonomous Certification Corporation of Medical Specialties (CONACEM); on August 1 begins the 2nd Course of Diagnostic and Therapeutic Endoscopic Techniques of Upper Digestive Endoscopy.
The course will last 23 academic hours and has 4 modules with scheduled dates for August 1, August 8, August 29 and September 5. The modality is entirely telematic and online.
Dr. Raúl Araya, a member of the Organizing Committee, states that this course is born from the success that the first course had in 2017 at a national and Latin American level. “At the time it was a contribution and we consider it an opportunity to develop this continuing education activity.This course has also allowed the integration and coordination of all the societies and associations already mentioned, which contributed as part of their objectives, with professionals and professors who pour their experience and updates under evidence in various conferences and classes “The main objective is to help with these tools in the training and education of gastroenterologists, surgeons and scholars, in diagnostic and therapeutic techniques of the upper digestive tract. For these reasons, we have great expectations and hope that the objectives set will be met,” he pointed out. .
On September 26, interesting SIED-OPGE conferences will also be given, such as: Be careful with the duodenum! Tips in the diagnosis and therapy of the duodenum, by Dr. Vitor Arantes (Brazil); Management of cystic lesions of the pancreas and pancreatic cancer, by Dr. Edson Guzmán (Peru); Diagnosis and treatment of early gastric cancer, by Dr. Miguel Ángel Tanimoto (Mexico); and State of the art in upper gastrointestinal bleeding, in diagnosis and therapy, by Dr. William Otero (Colombia).
Finally, on October 3, a Round Table on Ethics and Upper Endoscopy will be held, with the participation of Dr. María Ester Bufadel (Chile), Dr. Pablo Cortés (Chile) and Dr. Luis Caro (Argentina).
Registration and program details at
https://www.eopge.org/curso/2do-curso-de-tecnicas-endoscopicas-diagnosticas-y-terapeuticas-endoscopia-digestiva-alta
Latin American Consensus on the Diagnosis of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)
Latin American experts applied an exhaustive evaluation of the range of diagnostic methods for this disease, which shows an increase in its incidence at a global and regional level, given the rise in rates of obesity and population aging. The consensus was recently published by the Revista Acta Gastroenterológica Latinoamericana.
With the support of the Pan American Gastroenterology Organization (OPGE), the American Society of Neurogastroenterology and Motility (ANMS) and several Latin American Gastroenterology Scientific Societies (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico) that appear in the writing, recently The Latin American Consensus on the Diagnosis of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) was published in the prestigious Journal Acta Gastroenterológica Latinoamericana.
The publication was made possible thanks to the hard work of a renowned group of Latin American experts and based on an exhaustive analysis of the best available evidence, and used the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) methodology, which allowed evaluating the quality of the evidence of 23 questions that cover the full range of diagnostic methods for GERD.
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) is a highly prevalent disorder in our region and its incidence has been increasing in recent years, along with the increase in overweight/obesity and the increase in population age. This pathology generates a deterioration in the quality of life of patients and important health expenses, being one of the most frequent reasons for consultation in gastroenterological clinical practice and its diagnosis is sometimes difficult.
According to Dr. Jorge Olmos, Head of the Neurogastroenterology section of the Hospital de Clínicas José de San Martín, University of Buenos Aires (Argentina), “Through significant technological advances in recent years, we have contributed to the development of an important improvement, both in the understanding of the physiopathogenic mechanisms as well as the diagnosis of GERD. We consider it of great importance that clinicians and gastroenterologists who treat this condition have knowledge of the appropriate use, correct interpretation, performance and limitations of diagnostic tests” .
In the same vein, Dr. Marcelo Vela, professor of medicine, Section of Esophageal Disorders, Director of the Advanced Residency in Diseases of the Esophagus, Mayo Clinic, Arizona (United States); He pointed out that “The strength of the recommendation of each body, included in this consensus, was submitted to the vote of the group of experts in a meeting centralized in the Argentine Society of Gastroenterology. We hope that this document will be useful in the practice of our specialty, in the countries of our region”.
Link to Consensus: https://actaojs.org.ar/ojs/index.php/acta/article/view/210
Registry of Helicobacter pylori: Now it is the turn of Latin America
The Latin American Registry of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) seeks to eradicate the bacterium in the regional population and control its impact on patients with chronic gastritis and the potential development of gastric cancer. H. pylori eradication therapy has been shown to reduce the risk of gastric cancer in people with or without preneoplastic lesions such as gastric intestinal metaplasia.
After the success evidenced by the European Report on H. pylori, a joint effort seeks to replicate the study, this time with a focus on Latin America. The objective is to improve the health of patients by eradicating the H. pylori bacteria, in order to avoid undesirable health consequences, but directly related to chronic gastritis and potentially gastric cancer, thus reducing the costs derived from care in health and effectively implementing the consensus guidelines on clinical practice in the management of this infection.
For the global researcher of the project at an international level, Dr. Javier Gisbert (Spain), the European Registry “has not only been widely disseminated by specialized medical publications, but also has the support of a very important network at European and global level of gastroenterologists, who work on the management of this infection and which has also allowed, based on clinical experience, to identify the most common errors in clinical practice, common among European gastroenterologists, which allows identifying the margin for improvement in management of H. pylori to optimize adherence to current clinical guidelines.
For the specialist, the advantage of the European experience is that it transmits the know-how of the project at all levels, which allows a simple, direct replication and quick start-up in all the countries of the world.
It is estimated that about half of the world’s population is chronically infected with H. pylori and presents chronic non-atrophic gastritis in most cases. In some people, chronic gastritis can lead to the loss of the mucous glands (atrophy), to the replacement of the gastric epithelium by the intestinal one (gastric intestinal metaplasia and dysplasia). Additionally, Dr. Gisbert states that: “H. pylori eradication therapy has been shown to reduce the risk of gastric cancer in people with or without gastric intestinal metaplasia, in the absence of gastric neoplasia. Follow-up of patients with MIG It is a strategy that has proven to be profitable in different health models”.
In this sense, in June 2022 the European Registry on the management of H. pylori infection (Hp-EuReg) was published – available at http://hpeureg.com/ and promoted by the European Helicobacter and Microbiota Study Group ( EHMSG)-, whose purpose was to systematically evaluate the epidemiology, efficacy and safety of the great diversity of treatments to eradicate H. pylori, as well as obtain a more global vision on the management of infection by this bacterium, and thus implement the relevant consensus documents and clinical practice guidelines in the different countries; and to assess accessibility to health technologies and medications used in the management of this infection.
The registry currently includes more than 53,000 patients from 300 centers in 29 countries across Europe. The registry allows the direct analysis of the eradication trends of the different treatments, the adaptation of treatment protocols according to local resistance data, as well as the indirect calculation of the profitability of therapeutic schemes.
As a balance, Dr. Javier Gisbert points out that “despite the efforts made, in Europe there has been a 10% increase in the global eradication rate of first-line treatments since the start of the study in 2013. This type of pathological records constitute a very powerful tool used to audit H. pylori eradication treatments, resulting in improved clinical management of the infection and, subsequently, helping to reduce other undesirable consequences for health, such as the development of gastric cancer.
THE TURN OF OUR REGION
Latin America is already working on its version of the registry and in this sense, under the leadership of Dr. Arnoldo Riquelme himself (Researcher responsible for the development of the Latin American Registry for the management of H. pylori infection (Hp LATAM Reg) together with the project coordinator ( Dr. Diego Reyes), with the support of Dr. Javier Gisbert and Dr. Leticia Moreira, representatives of several gastroenterology scientific societies, already share their first impressions:
Argentina
“For almost a year now, Argentina has been developing an Argentine Registry of H. pylori. For us, the Registry project (Hp LATAM Reg) led by Dr. Arnoldo Riquelme (Chile) is key. On the one hand, the support and ideas of He has been very valuable to start our Registry and also the possibility of entering the registry, with the particularity that the data will have according to the regions and countries.Likewise, in Argentina it is the possibility of starting to think about collaborative multicenter projects and integrating ourselves in the different Centers and Hospitals and I understand that Hp LATAM Reg is oriented towards this objective.
I do not want to fail to mention the European registry, which has been our model to follow. The possibility of having our own data to add to the LATAM Registry is invaluable, giving relevance to “Real World Evidence” and our expectation of incorporation opens up significant opportunities for us to start collaborative projects.
Currently 240 patients with complete eradication data are included. Centers from Buenos Aires and from different provinces such as Santa Fe, Córdoba, Jujuy and Mendoza participate. To date, several Centers are finishing their Regulatory stage in the Ethics Committee to enter.
Mexico
“Currently, Mexico has a population of 128 million inhabitants and it is estimated that after the age of 18, between 60 and 70% of this population are carriers of H. pylori. Thus, we are a population with a high prevalence of the infection and although it has been reduced (in the 1990s it was close to 80%), it is still considered a relevant health problem.In recent years, resistance to the triple eradication scheme (amoxicillin-clarithromycin- proton pump inhibitor) has become relevant, since its effectiveness is less than 70%, which together with the high prevalence form an adverse combination that affects the health of our population.
The fact that Mexico is integrated into the Hp LATAM Reg registry will allow a better understanding of how H. pylori infection behaves (from the clinical, biological and antimicrobial susceptibility point of view) in the different regions of our country and be able to compare it with the rest of Latin America. We firmly believe that this initiative will help define health policies and strategies that have served in other countries and adapt it to our reality. It will also allow the establishment of scientific and technological ties between the region, which is why we are undoubtedly convinced of the importance of projects such as the Hp LATAM Reg Registry. At the moment we are in the committee approval phase, but we hope to be able to start in the following months. actively”.
Colombia
“Colombia has a population of approximately 51 million inhabitants. The prevalence of H. pylori infection is estimated to be 60% in the adult population. The resistance found in H. pylori to different antibiotics is as follows: amoxicillin < 2%, tetracycline 2%, clarithromycin 25%, levofloxacin 27%, metronidazole >80%.Cure rates of infection with triple for 10 days, with clarithromycin (Amoxicillin 1 g twice daily, clarithromycin 500 mg twice daily day + proton pump inhibitor) is 71%, with levofloxacin 75%, with levofloxacin + clarithromycin 79%, overall 76%. All these cure rates are below 80%, being unacceptable. In the 90s the success of triple therapies was ≥90%.
The prevalence of rapid or ultra-rapid metabolizers of PPIs is 80%. Therefore, at our National University, we only use esomeprazole because it is minimally influenced by the type of metabolizer.
For us it is very important to be part of the Hp LATAM Hp registry for all that this implies for our continent and for the future to be able to carry out studies of the “real world” and as a continent; progressively identify the most effective therapies for each country or region. We agree with Professor Remes-Troche, that it will be a magnificent opportunity to unite scientifically and technologically. Also at the moment we are in the process of approval of the protocol by the ethics committees.”
Peru
“We have recently started the call and we hope to start collecting data shortly. This registry is extremely important in Peru because we have a high prevalence of H. pylori, close to 80% of the general population, and additionally, a high incidence of stomach cancer, which is the cancer with the highest lethality in our country.The relationship between H. pylori and stomach cancer has been recognized for several years and one of the strategies that needs to be implemented is the eradication of H. pylori, to This, the registry and its subsequent study of resistance, will be of vital importance since they will allow knowing real data from different regions of the country and will help to design programs adapted to each region and make them more efficient.
Our expectations are very high and having the support of OPGE in the organization and experience of the European Registry of H. pylori will be of great help to achieve a greater objective, which is to improve the quality of life of our population.”
Chili
“The truth is that the Hp LATAM Reg project comes to life from the generosity of Dr. Javier Gisbert and later, with the push of Dr. Leticia Moreira, current coordinator of the European project, who have had the vision of the importance of expanding the development of registries in other continents. Due to the idiopathic closeness and the friendship that has been generated over the years with Spanish researchers from the Spanish Association of Gastroenterology (AEG), we have been able to materialize the development of this project, which starts in Chile with 100 recruited patients, where the high response rate to quadruple scheme with high doses of proton pump inhibitors, amoxicillin and metronidazole associated with bismuth subsalicylate (97% efficacy), compared to schemes based on clarithromycin (In Santiago de Chile, resistance to clarithromycin is 30%). This type of experience can be disseminated and shared with other Latin American countries to improve our clinical practices. This project is of low complexity and can help us create a research culture so that in the future we can develop other more ambitious collaborative projects such as the study of resistance to antibiotics (Hp RESLA), under OPGE, since we have excellent researchers on the continent and the next president of OPGE is Dr. Alejandro Piscoya from Peru, so we can create a long-term agenda that allows us to generate new knowledge from the continent. We hope to have preliminary results to be presented at the Pan American Digestive Disease Weeks (SPED) between October 8 and 11, 2023 in Santiago, Chile.”
Dr. Alejandro Piscoya from Peru, in charge of the WGO Scientific Committee for Clinical Guidelines and future president of OPGE 2023: “We are experiencing a huge change in the paradigm of medical education”
Although there is still a year to go before he assumes the presidency of the Pan American Gastroenterology Organization (OPGE), Dr. Piscoya is already participating in a series of activities that will help raise the health realities of our specialty in the region, as well as maintain a presence America in international spaces that seek to improve the training of gastroenterologists and endoscopists for a more timely diagnosis.
With a smile and a cadence that is not consistent with the positions and the agenda he has, Dr. Alejandro Piscoya tells us about his view of the education and training of the new generations of gastroenterologists and endoscopists in Latin America, and of the challenges that he hopes to address in the OPGE starting next year.
Dr. Alejandro Piscoya, vice president of the Society of Gastroenterology of Peru, Head of Gastroenterology at Hospital Guillermo Kaelin de la Fuente and editor of the Journal of Gastroenterology of Peru, is an eminence in education in this subspecialty and although he humbly comments that almost “accidentally” obtained a study scholarship in La Paz, Bolivia, through the Medical College of Peru; Only then did he learn about a learning opportunity that the Japanese Bolivian Institute of Gastroenterology (IGBJ) called at the time, thanks to the support of the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Piscoya explains that when he attended his first training course at this center, one of the most prestigious in the world, he never thought he would have access not only to the latest technology, but also to become an apprentice to the most erudite endoscopists.
“It was the third year that, thanks to a WGO agreement, training scholarships were awarded. I remember that the fact of having two intensive weeks of training with young specialists from all over Latin America, Central America and even Mexico seemed very attractive. Beyond the technique, I found it a very enriching experience to share and exchange realities about the gastroenterology approach”.
The specialist highlights that the experience also constituted a unique instance to learn how countries faced diagnoses such as celiac disease, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) and gastric cancer. “In addition to building bonds of friendship, it was an opportunity to investigate in depth and to learn in a very participatory way,” says Dr. Piscoya.
Since then, Alejandro has spent more than 20 years dedicated to the training of gastroenterology specialists, at a time when he is grateful for the end of a period in which education was very vertical and authoritarian. “Today we are experiencing a huge change in the paradigm of medical education. The teacher exchanges opinions with his apprentices and that exercise in itself constitutes learning. A wonderful feedback based on humility is generated to teach, to recognize mistakes, to correct and learn “, says the vice president of the Society of Gastroenterology of Peru.
Hoy en día los cursos internacionales congregan a diversas generaciones de especialistas de la gastroenterología y la endoscopía provenientes de Europa, Japón y Estados Unidos. Parte de las actividades incluyen procedimientos que permiten entrenar habilidades y retroalimentar conocimientos de formadores y de aprendices. “Bajo la iniciativa Train The Trainers (TTT) de la WGO, además se incluyen cursos de docencia, en los que aprendemos a enseñar. Y es que no basta con saber de medicina, es muy importante saber enseñar a profesionales adultos, utilizar las tecnologías y saber reconocer los aspectos importantes de una investigación o una publicación médica internacional”.
Piscoya recuerda que en sus inicios, el Dr. Roque Sáenz (Chile), por ejemplo, observó que había una dificultad con el inglés en la docencia, ello considerando el lenguaje técnico propio de la especialidad. “Una cosa es enseñar sobre endoscopías, pero en la docencia es más complicado para quienes no somos nativos. Así nació un programa piloto de entrenamiento docente en español, una experiencia muy útil que permitió anticipar dificultades”, añade.
Con orgullo, el Dr. Piscoya comenta que en el año 2013, alcanzaron una aprobación del 95% en la calidad docente, un estándar muy superior a la media. El especialista asegura que este ejercicio de bajar al docente desde un pedestal históricamente infalible, hizo sin duda de la educación un proceso más eficiente, útil y enriquecedor con beneficio doble, tanto para el educador como para el aprendiz. “Acostumbrado a las jerarquías del ecosistema educacional, viví en primera persona el impacto positivo de otro modelo de educación y formación práctica. Debemos partir por reconocer que somos seres falibles y hay que aprender a reconocer los desfaces con las nuevas generaciones, aceptando que la evidencia está al alcance de todos. En 25 años de experiencia profesional, uno puede haber visto 1000 pacientes y la evidencia te provee la experiencia de 25 mil pacientes. Eso es indiscutible y debemos valorar el trabajo de otros”.
Como miembro de la Academia de Educadores de la American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), el Dr. Piscoya reconoce que nunca se termina de aprender. “Uno como médico lee toda la vida y aprendemos a revisar acuciosamente la metodología de las investigaciones, incluso más allá de los resultados. Si el método falla, no se pueden corregir los errores. Sabemos que incluso reconocidas publicaciones médicas y científicas cometen errores y es importante transmitir este tipo de fallas a los alumnos, para que así aprendan a ser más rigurosos como investigadores y como lectores”.
Alejandro se sonríe al momento de hacer un balance de su historia como educador y concluye: “Tengo la convicción de que la distancia daña la capacidad de enseñar. No es bueno aprender con miedo. Lo más provechoso es trabajar juntos en una mesa y alimentar una relación horizontal entre educador y aprendiz. Las nuevas generaciones son muy digitales y tienen mucho que enseñarnos, ya que somos migrantes digitales. Ambos aprendemos de nuestros aciertos y más aún de nuestros errores. Este desafío permanente me obliga a sumergirme en los procesos analíticos y reflexivos de mis alumnos, para detectar el error y corregir a tiempo”.
Al cierre de esta entrevista, es imposible abstraerse del contexto de la pandemia. Al consultar al Dr. Alejandro Piscoya acerca del impacto del COVID en Perú, él explica: “Al igual que todos, hemos sido golpeados por esta enfermedad. Este escenario dejó al descubierto la realidad de nuestra salud pública. Somos un país emergente que ha crecido en los últimos 20 años y muchos salieron de la pobreza, pero ello no se ha traducido en mejores instituciones, salud y educación. La economía acaparó la atención por mucho tiempo y la pandemia desnudó las inequidades. No tuvimos las herramientas para responder a esta enfermedad, desde el número de camas y ventiladores hasta el capital humano formado para responder a las exigencias. Si bien, rápidamente pudimos mejorar la infraestructura, las personas no se pueden formar rápidamente, lo que puso en valor la importancia de la formación especializada. Debemos resolver la escasez de gastroenterólogos que manejen patologías y sepan procedimientos. La mitad del país no tiene acceso a especialistas de gastroenterología y más de la mitad de nuestros hospitales están en Lima. A ello se suma que nuestros especialistas en endoscopía avanzada se van a Bolivia, Colombia y Argentina, y esa fuga de capital humano valioso debe ser recaptado, ya que nuestro país estamos llegando 10 a 15 años tarde al diagnóstico oportuno de nuestros cánceres digestivos, sin considerar que el cáncer de colon -otrora considerado enfermedad del tercer mundo- hoy está entre los “top 10″ de los cánceres generales y aún no contamos con un programa de prevención”.
La OPGE hoy tiene un asiento en el comité de la WGO y según el Dr. Alejandro Piscoya, este espacio permitirá canalizar preocupaciones y desafíos propios de nuestra región.
Latinoamérica cuenta con centros de formación que nos permitirán mejorar la precisión y la oportunidad en el diagnóstico y para hacer esto realidad, es determinante mejorar el grupo de entrenadores que construyen los peldaños que nos permitirán ascender en esta ruta de perfeccionamiento.
Dr. Carolina Olano, Secretary General World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO): Gender equality, climate change and education will be priorities for the WGO
Carolina proudly confesses to being a Latin American gastroenterologist and recognizes herself as a lover of this specialty. Professor of medicine at the University of the Republic of Uruguay, today assumes as secretary general of the World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO), confirming her commitment to the fair development of quality medicine accessible from the regions of the Americas, Africa and Middle East, Europe and Asia Pacific.
Coming from the interior of Uruguay, from a town called Vergara, Carolina Olano grew up in a middle-class family and a lot of effort, as she describes it. The daughter of a teacher mother and banker father, she was educated along with her sister with clear values and principles, forging respect for others and appreciation for effort and dedication, as a daily task that always brings rewards in life. She comments between laughs that her mother assures that she wanted to be a doctor since she was 6 years old, a decision that she never doubted, and that only involved other choices when choosing her subspecialty, when at the beginning of her career she was blinded by Surgery. Remember that he had a mentor and great master of surgery in those years, with a great storytelling ability and that he used to tell them mythological legends such as “Laocconte” and this battle that a Trojan priest and his twin sons waged against sea serpents, making the allusion to the fight of the surgeon, with the help of the endoscopist and the radiologist, against the disease. Today Carolina assures that history would probably be different, since in a collaborative dynamic, with no specialist being more important than another, gastroenterologists and endoscopists wage a very professional battle in the fight against digestive pathologies.
Dr. Olano was president of the Uruguayan Society of Gastroenterology a few years ago, and she also has a long history at OPGE. Although today she assumes the post of secretary general of the WGO, her history in this place is as long as in the academy, where she is still the only professor of gastroenterology at her house of studies, the University of the Republic.
How do you assume this new commitment within WGO?
This position for me is a challenge and a high honor, since it is an organization that brings together 117 member societies, representing more than 60,000 gastroenterologists and that has welcomed professionals of the highest level, representing the 4 most important regions of the globe: The Americas, Africa and the Middle East, Europe and Asia Pacific.
I also feel very proud to hold this position as a professional Latin American woman, which commits me to channel and represent the concerns of the union and gender, in terms of all the countries that WGO represents, in addition to considering other aspects of current affairs as is the post-pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
In this first stage, I not only hope to follow the guidelines of our president at WGO, Dr. Guilherme Macedo, but also continue with the work of inclusion of women in gastroenterology and enable spaces that allow them to access leadership positions and the promotion of development of the female professional career, identifying all types of open or covert discrimination.
In addition to the efforts in terms of gender equity, what are the challenges in WGO?
Another big challenge is climate change. Migration and the appearance of new infectious diseases in areas most affected by climate change are a current concern in our directive. We seek to collect the needs in a timely manner, learning from the inequities that the pandemic uncovered in 2020 and 2021.
Another important aspect of our work plan is education, and for this we will continue with the TTT program, Train the Trainers, which also includes the development of soft skills such as teamwork, group discussion, adult education, communication techniques, and other more leadership-oriented components. For that, we hope to focus on the most vulnerable regions and with fewer specialists in order to facilitate access to training in endoscopy and hepatology, among others. Along these same lines, a program aimed at young people was recently created, associated with leadership, which will help them conduct their careers based on their stated objectives and includes remote tutoring, so that together we can help them design their roadmap, considering the conditioning factors that determine it and taking advantage of the WGO’s instruments and networks, with a strong motivational component.
Carolina feels fulfilled as a woman and professional. Married to a lawyer and mother of two children, a communications sciences student (22 years old) and a basketball player studying business administration (19), she comments that she still cultivates traditions very typical of rural family life, and is very attentive to the formation of good people. Likewise, as an academic of the Faculty of Medicine, she treasures the instances of conversation with the new generations, insisting on the vocation of service and humanity in the treatment of the patient, especially at times when we give bad news.
“It is so important to shake hands or caress the patient who suffers or who experiences fear or uncertainty. I would not want our doctors to lose those skills that are as powerful as knowledge or good treatment. In the same way, I try to convey to them that effort is the requirement that prevails in every project that is undertaken, as well as the determination not to abandon our purpose.The patient is not a set of organs, he is a human being who feels and that we must keep at the center of our daily work “, he concludes.
Review:
Dr. Olano is Professor Director of the Department of Gastroenterology at the University of the Republic, Montevideo, Uruguay. She graduated in medicine (MD) from the University of the Republic, Montevideo, Uruguay in 1993 and obtained a postgraduate degree in Gastroenterology from the same university in 1996. She completed her training in gastrointestinal endoscopy at the Gastroenterology Clinic and associated public hospitals in Montevideo. After an internship at the department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Infectious Diseases at the Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Germany in 2008, she specialized in video capsule endoscopy and enteroscopy.
She has shown a deep interest in university education, achieving in 2010 a master’s degree (M Sc (Ed)) at a private university in Montevideo (Universidad ORT). Dr. Olano participates in educational activities of the World Gastroenterology Organization, has been part of the faculty of the Spanish TTT program and was a member of the working groups of the guidelines for IBS and celiac disease. She is the current Secretary General of the WGO, after stepping down as Chairman of its Scientific Committee.
She has held various positions in the Uruguayan Society of Gastroenterology, including President, Secretary and President of International Affairs.
Her main areas of interest include intestinal diseases and medical education.
Dr. Eduardo Gutiérrez Galiana, president of the OPGE period 2018-2021: “I feel that the pandemic strengthened us in many ways”
In a quite intimate conversation, Dr. Eduardo Gutiérrez Galiana welcomes us with a book in his hands, which was prepared by his father (Dr. Horacio Gutiérrez Blanco) that contains 120 biographical reviews on Exemplary Uruguayan Doctors, and after rereading the dedication from his father addressed to him in 1989, he feels that precisely that message gave him more energy to continue working for the OPGE in years as difficult as the last two, in the context of a pandemic. The World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO) has just distinguished Dr. Eduardo Gutiérrez Galiana, for his leadership, dedication and commitment as a member of the OPGE Governing Council in his 2018-2021 period.
This remarkable speaker of our subspecialty of medicine, he comes from a family with a long history in gastroenterology and digestive endoscopy. In fact, his father was an emeritus professor at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of the Republic of Uruguay, a founding member in 1946 of the Latin American Association of Gastroenterology, which would later become the Inter-American Association of Gastroenterology (AIGE), and from From 2016 it was renamed OPGE, and President of the Latin American Association of Coloproctology (ALACP) during the years 1962-1963. Likewise, his older brother Horacio and his nephew Juan Pablo also chose his professional vocation for gastroenterology and digestive endoscopy.
The arrival of COVID undoubtedly shook various spaces of society and humanity. Along with this and presiding over the OPGE, Gutiérrez Galiana recalls that it was an intense period of changing decisions that put various activities in check, including the Pan American Congress of Gastroenterology. “I feel that the pandemic strengthened us in many ways. On the one hand, we learned about the advantages of remote telecommunications, opening the opportunity for many more people to participate, and on the other hand, it fueled the need to empower and unite even more as an organization and community. Very nice and significant gestures were given that strengthened our ties in the Pan-American region, as well as worldwide.”
In a totally virtual modality, the congress was held in July 2021, registering a total of 2,242 participants from 40 countries and exhibitors from the 22 countries of the Americas that are members of OPGE, as well as representatives from several countries in Africa, Asia and Europe, such as Morocco, Egypt, Spain, Germany, England, Ireland, Poland, Italy, Japan, Austria, Portugal, France, China, Holland and Belgium, among others. We also had the participation of 220 professors from 34 countries, and 37 Associations and Organizations of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy from around the world, who were present at different symposiums and courses in the specialty. The meeting lasted for 3 days, and had 4 parallel rooms in which 457 conferences were given, and 123 research papers were submitted.
Dr. Gutiérrez Galiana points out: “The virtual modality showed important advantages to share teachings with a wide audience and facilitate access to participants from all over the world, who valued the teaching aspect of this format of activities. Surely the hybrid modality will continue to be It is important to note that last year we awarded 3 prizes to the best scientific papers presented at the congress, calling them: Prof. Dr. Elbio Zeballos prize, Prof. Dr. Luis Alberto Boerr prize and Prof. Dr. Horacio Gutiérrez Blanco, and 3 new Masters of Pan American Gastroenterology were appointed: Professors Dr. Elena Fosman from Uruguay, Dr. Sheila Crowe from the USA and Dr. Miguel Ángel Valdovinos from Mexico.
Together with the XXXVII Pan-American Congress of Gastroenterology, the XX Uruguayan Congress of Gastroenterology and the X Uruguayan Congress of Digestive Endoscopy were held, whose presidents were Drs. Virginia López and Federico De Simone, respectively. Gutiérrez Galiana highlighted the importance of the enormous collaborative work of the 22 Associations and Organizations of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy of the Americas that are members of OPGE, and in addition to 15 of the main Associations of the specialty from the rest of the world, who participated in the congress carrying out various activities. , highlighting the Symposium of the Americas where all the member associations of OPGE participated, the Symposium of the World Organization of Gastroenterology WGO, chaired by its president Prof. Dr. Naima Amrani, the distinguished conference of the WGO given by Prof. Dr. Richard Kozarek, the Symposium of the European Union of Gastroenterology UEG, the Symposium of the American College of Gastroenterology ACG, the Symposium of the American Association of Gastroenterology AGA, the Symposium of the Latin American Association for the Study of the Liver ALEH, the Symposium of the Pan American Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis Organization PANCCO, the Symposium of the Latin American Society of Neurogastroenterology, the Symposium of the Mc Master University of Canada, the Symposium of the Spanish Society of Digestive Pathology SEPD, the Symposium of the Spanish Association of Gastroenterology AEG, the Symposium of the Rome Foundation, the Symposium of the Spanish Group for the Study of Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis GETECCU, among others. “Nothing achieved could have been done without the work and dedicated commitment of the Scientific Commission of the congress, since virtuality allowed us to focus on the performance of the virtual event perfectly. To do this, all the presentations were recorded and delivered previously , in order to comply with the planned times, and only connect the exhibitors for the rounds of questions and discussion”, adds the former president of OPGE.
During his period and thanks to the collaborative effort of essential scientific and administrative teams, as he points out, courses were held on Upper and Lower Digestive Tube, and Hepatology (2019 and 2020). 15 Webinar seminars have also been developed since 2019 together with the American College of Gastroenterology ACG, an organization with which an important link was consolidated. He highlights that he was fundamental during the entire period at the head of OPGE, the invaluable support received by the World Gastroenterology Organization WGO.
“From the OPGE, the existence of this organization dedicated to the development of knowledge in gastroenterology and digestive endoscopy in America is fundamental, and teamwork is very important. There is a before and after the pandemic and I think we have reaped a lot of learning that forces us to to continue advancing and perfecting ourselves. When you work with love and in a group there are no limits and without a doubt we can build synergies and a virtuous circle that allows us to grow and feed each other as a community. My thanks go out for having been part of this wonderful process”, he concludes Dr. Eduardo Gutiérrez Galiana.
He reviews more details of the congress at:
https://sped2021.com/home/
OPGE Directive 2018-2021:
Eduardo Gutierrez Galiana – President (Uruguay)
Javier San Martin – Vice President (Uruguay)
José Pedro Ibargoyen – Secretary General (Uruguay)
Ana Laura Rodríguez – Treasurer (Uruguay)
Juan Pablo Gutiérrez Aguiar – Deputy Secretary (Uruguay)
Virginia González – Pro-Treasurer (Uruguay)
Edgardo Smecuol – Executive Secretary (Argentina)
María Deambrosio – Administrative Secretary (Uruguay)
OPGE Scientific and Education Commission:
Horacio Gutierrez Galiana (Uruguay)
Edgardo Smecuol (Argentina)
Richard Kozarek (USA)
Arnoldo Riquelme (Chile)
OPGE Research and Publications Commission:
David Carr-Locke (USA)
Thomas Kroner (USA)
Commission of Past-Presidents of OPGE:
Julio Cesar Bai (Argentina)
Luis Carlos Sabbagh (Colombia)
Jose Roberto de Almeida (Brazil)
Scientific Commission of the XXXVII Pan American Congress of Gastroenterology:
José Pedro Ibargoyen (President of the Scientific Commission of the Pan American Congress) (Uruguay)
Carla Bianchi (Uruguay)
Cristina Dacoll (Uruguay)
Federico De Simone (Uruguay)
Nicolas Gonzalez (Uruguay)
Juan Pablo Gutierrez Aguiar (Uruguay)
Horacio Gutierrez Galiana (Uruguay)
Beatriz Iade (Uruguay)
Susan Kohen (Uruguay)
Thomas Kroner (USA)
Virginia Lopez (Uruguay)
Klaus Monkemuller (Germany)
Carolina Olano (Uruguay)
Yessica Pontet (Uruguay)
Adriana Raggio (Uruguay)
Elena Trucco (Uruguay)
We are waiting for you at this important event: “The best of DDW 2022 in Spanish”
Digestive Disease Week (DDW) is an attractive event aimed at gastroenterologists from around the world, many of whom come from Spanish-speaking countries. A few years ago, the American Gastroenterology Association (AGA) included the session called “The Best of DDW in Spanish”, which seeks to spread the best of its days to its audience.
For “The Best of DDW in Spanish”, this year AGA has invited 5 experts in different subjects of our discipline, among them: Dr. Arnoldo Riquelme (Chile), Dr. Rodrigo Jover (Spain), Dr. Mario Pelaez Luna (Mexico), Dr. Sonia Niveloni (Argentina) and Dr. Fabián Emura (Colombia), who will discuss valuable information on gastric disorders, colorectal cancer, pancreatic disease, celiac disease and endoscopy.
This interesting session will be led by Professor Dr. Carolina Olano, Secretary General of the World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO) and Dr. Edgardo Smecuol (Honorary Secretary of the Pan American Gastroenterology Organization (OPGE). The appointment is for Tuesday, May 24 , between 2:00 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. (Pacific time: GMT-7), at the San Diego Convention Center (Room 11), and those who are registered for DDW can access it both in person and online.
In the opinion of Dr. Edgardo Smecuol, “This space in Spanish is very important for our community of specialists attending the congress to get a clear message and in our language. This symposium will address 5 topics along with references from each specialty. For several years “The Best of DDW” had exhibitors who spoke Spanish but lived in the United States, and about 5 years ago some members of OPGE tried to give it a more Latin American imprint, so that they are not only Spanish speakers, but also referents of throughout the region, most of them being leaders of OPGE member societies”.
With more than a decade of experience, this space allows updating on the latest advances addressed in the congress, but it also constitutes a significant instance of camaraderie among members of our organization.