Get ready to dive into the world of pediatric gastroenterology and discover the latest breakthroughs! The NASPGHAN 2025 Annual Meeting was a hub of innovation, bringing together top clinicians, researchers, and health experts to share groundbreaking insights. From Chicago, Illinois, HCPLive delivered exclusive coverage, and we're here to recap the key takeaways.
Helicobacter pylori: Unraveling the Geographic Mystery
Dr. Silvana Bonilla, an attending physician at Boston Children's Hospital, presented fascinating multicenter data. She explored the prevalence of H. pylori infection in children with eosinophilic esophagitis, celiac disease, and inflammatory bowel disease across the Americas. The findings revealed a 9.3% overall prevalence with significant geographic variations. Colombia led with 51.6% of positive cases, followed by the US at 29%, and Chile at 6.5%. This research highlights the complex immunological role of H. pylori in pediatric digestive diseases.
Watch our discussion with Dr. Bonilla
H. pylori Guidelines and Geographical Prevalence
In an insightful video interview, Dr. Bonilla discussed how her findings align with the 2023 NASPGHAN/ESPGHAN guidelines. These guidelines conditionally recommend against routine H. pylori biopsies in children evaluated for IBD, CeD, or EoE. She emphasized the importance of clinical suspicion over routine biopsies and highlighted ongoing plans to longitudinally follow patients to assess H. pylori's potential protective effects and the influence of environmental shifts on immune-mediated digestive diseases.
Join the discussion on H. pylori
Linaclotide's Long-Term Safety: A Ray of Hope for IBS-C Patients
Exciting news for pediatric patients with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C)! Long-term safety data for linaclotide (Linzess) demonstrated a low incidence of diarrhea and excellent tolerability over 52 weeks of treatment. The FDA approved linaclotide for this population on November 5, 2025, based on extrapolated adult efficacy data and a 12-week pediatric trial. In an ongoing phase 3 study, 98 patients received once-daily linaclotide at 145 μg or 290 μg, with safety findings consistent with adult studies and no treatment discontinuations due to adverse events.
FDA Approval of Linaclotide: A Conversation with Dr. Julie Khlevner
Dr. Julie Khlevner, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Columbia University Medical Center and Chair of the NASPGHAN Neurogastroenterology and Motility Committee, shared her thoughts on the FDA approval of linaclotide for children with IBS-C. She highlighted improvements in bowel movement frequency and abdominal pain, confirming the therapy's tolerability and potential use by pediatric gastroenterologists and general pediatricians. Dr. Khlevner also emphasized the ongoing need for new pediatric therapeutics to address individual symptomatology.
Watch Dr. Khlevner's insights on linaclotide's FDA approval
Safety and Tolerability of Tenapanor in Pediatric IBS-C: A Conversation with Dr. Thomas Wallach
Interim data from the phase 3 R-ALLY trial and its open-label extension showed that tenapanor, a sodium/hydrogen exchanger isoform 3 (NHE3) inhibitor, is safe and well-tolerated in adolescents with IBS-C. Dr. Thomas Wallach highlighted the absence of serious treatment-related adverse events and a safety profile consistent with adult data. He discussed the potential of tenapanor in managing pediatric constipation while emphasizing the need for further investigation into its efficacy.
Watch our full interview with Dr. Wallach
Odevixibat: A Breakthrough for FIC1 Deficiency and Alagille Syndrome
Post hoc analyses of PEDFIC 1 and PEDFIC 2 demonstrated that odevixibat provides sustained reductions in serum bile acids and improvements in pruritus in patients with FIC1 deficiency (PFIC1). Long-term treatment up to 96 weeks maintained clinically meaningful improvements, highlighting odevixibat's durable benefit in managing the biochemical and symptomatic burdens of PFIC1.
Explore more on odevixibat for FIC1 deficiency
In patients with Alagille syndrome, odevixibat treatment led to long-term improvements in sleep and caregiver-reported quality of life (QoL). Data from the ASSERT and ASSERT-EXT studies showed sustained enhancements across multiple sleep parameters and Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory scores over 96 weeks of therapy. These findings emphasize odevixibat's impact on symptomatic relief and overall patient well-being, building on previous data on pruritus reduction in cholestatic liver disease.
Discover odevixibat's long-term QoL and sleep improvement data
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