Author information
1
Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Virginia Commonwealth University and McGuire VA Medical Center, Richmond, VA, USA.
2
Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
3
Center for Infectious Diseases, The University of Texas School of Public Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Kelsey Research Foundation, Houston, TX, USA.
4
Institute of Functional and Motor Digestive Disorders, Centro Médico Teknon, Barcelona, Spain.
5
Catholic University of Rome, Gemelli University Hospital, Rome, Italy. Electronic address: antonio.gasbarrini@unicatt.it.
6
Translational Research Center for Gastrointestinal Disorders (TARGID), Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Leuven, Belgium; Department of Gastroenterology, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Leuven, Belgium.
Abstract
Digestive diseases are a broad range of chronic disorders that substantially and negatively impact the patients' quality of life. Here, we review our current understanding on the pathophysiology of hepatic encephalopathy, irritable bowel syndrome, and diverticular disease, with a special focus on the gut microbiota composition associated with these disorders. Furthermore, we review the current clinical practice for their therapeutic treatments, including probiotics, diet change, non-adsorbable disaccharides, and antibiotics. We highlight that broad-spectrum non-adsorbable antibiotics, such as rifaximin, are quite effective and safe for the treatment of all essayed digestive diseases.