The CROCO (CROhn's Disease COhort Study) - study design and protocol.

Background: Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic, relapsing and remitting inflammatory bowel disease that can be associated with significant bowel damage and disability. The Lémann Index (LI) is a validated tool for measuring cumulative bowel damage in CD patients through a comprehensive assessment of stricturing, penetrating and surgical lesions. However, prospective studies evaluating bowel damage progression in recently diagnosed CD patients remain limited.

New insights into thiopurine toxicity: The contribution of rare XDH variants to myelotoxicity.

Thiopurines (azathioprine and mercaptopurine) are immunosuppressant drugs widely used for the treatment of acute lymphocytic leukemia, organ transplantation and autoimmune diseases, including inflammatory bowel diseases. Thiopurine-induced myelotoxicity (TIM) remains a significant concern in thiopurine therapy, with around 50 % of cases lacking explanation through known genetic variants in thiopurine methyltransferase (TPMT) or nudix (nucleoside diphosphate linked moiety X)-type motif 15 (NUDT15). For these patients, genetic influence remains unknown.

Volumetric Changes in Perianal Fistulizing Crohn's Disease Measured by Magnetic Resonance Is Feasible and Could Be a Potential Biomarker to Predict Clinical Outcomes.

Background And Aim: Changes in 3D volumetry of perianal fistulas in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) measured by MRI could be an imaging biomarker of interest. The objective of the study was to determine the value of volumetric changes in CD perianal fistulas after medical treatment to predict outcomes.

Methods: This is a retrospective single-center pilot study evaluating CD patients with active perianal fistulas who started biological therapy between 2012 and 2021.

GETECCU position paper on fragility, advanced age and inflammatory bowel disease.

Frailty is a state of vulnerability characterised by a decrease in physiological reserve and the ability to respond to stress, which increases the risk of complications, adverse effects of treatments and functional decline. Assessing frailty allows the biological age of patients to be determined, beyond their chronological age, providing a more accurate picture of their health status and care needs. The proportion of older adults with IBD is increasing in parallel with the ageing of the general population, and it is estimated that in the next decade, more than a third of IBD patients will be over 60 years of age.

Differential effects of tofacitinib on macrophage activation contribute to lack of response in ulcerative colitis patients.

Background And Aims: Tofacitinib, a Janus kinase inhibitor, is approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis. Nonetheless, 40-60% of patients will not respond adequately. The mechanisms underlying responses to tofacitinib remain unknown.

Spanish Working Group in Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis (GETECCU) position paper for the management of non-perianal fistulizing Crohn's disease.

Crohn's disease consists on a complex condition where, despite most patients initially present with an inflammatory behavior, a significant proportion develop complicated lesions such as strictures, fistulas, abscesses, or even perforations. These lesions progressively increase over time and are associated with a higher risk of surgery and hospitalization. Despite significant advances in their management after the introduction of biological therapies, particularly anti-TNF agents, these complications continue to pose challenges for the multiple professionals involved in their care.

Early Biological Therapy Within 12 Months of Diagnosis Leads to Higher Transmural Healing Rates in Crohn's Disease.

Background & Aims: Transmural healing (TH) is emerging as a potential Crohn's disease (CD) treatment target. Early biological treatment seems to be associated with improved disease outcomes, but its impact on TH remains unclear. We aimed to assess the impact of early biological treatment initiation on TH and its influence on CD prognosis.

Subcutaneous Infliximab Cutoff Points in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Data From the ENEIDA Registry.

Background And Aims: Switching from intravenous infliximab (IV-IFX) to subcutaneous biosimilar infliximab (SC-IFX) has been shown to safely maintain clinical remission and increase drug levels in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). The aim of this study was to evaluate long-term outcomes after switching from IV-IFX to SC-IFX, including the drug concentration thresholds for maintaining remission and other predictors for loss of response after the switch.

Methods: This multicenter observational study involved CD and UC patients who were in clinical remission for at least 24 weeks and were scheduled to switch from IV-IFX to SC-IFX.

Adenoma detection rate and tolerability of 2 ultra-low-volume bowel preparations in screening: a noninferiority randomized controlled trial.

Background And Aims: The adenoma detection rate (ADR), recognized as a surrogate marker for colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence and mortality reduction, is closely linked to the efficacy of bowel cleansing. However, there is a dearth of evidence examining the impact on ADR when using 2 distinct very-low-dose bowel cleansing products. This study sought to compare ADR in an immunochemical fecal occult blood test (iFOBT)-based organized screening program by using 1 L of polyethylene glycol plus ascorbate (1L-PEGA) versus sodium picosulfate with magnesium citrate (SPMC), both administered in a split-dose regimen.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging Features Indicative of Permanent Colon Damage in Ulcerative Colitis: An Exploratory Study.

Background And Aims: It is uncertain whether ulcerative colitis leads to accumulated bowel damage on cross-sectional image. We aimed to characterise bowel damage in patients with ulcerative colitis using magnetic resonance imaging [MRI], and to determine its relation with duration of disease and the impact on patients' quality of life.

Methods: In this prospective study, patients with ulcerative colitis [UC] in endoscopic remission underwent MRI without bowel cleansing, and completed quality-of-life questionnaires.

Magnetic resonance enterography findings 46 weeks after initiation of biological therapy predict long-term adverse outcomes in Crohn's disease.

Background And Aims: Magnetic resonance enterography (MRE) depicts transmural changes in response to biological treatment for Crohn's disease (CD); however, the long-term prognostic significance of these findings is unknown. The primary objective of this study was to identify findings on MRE 46 weeks after initiating biological treatment that predict adverse long-term outcomes.

Methods: Patients with CD underwent MRE 46 weeks after initiating biological treatment and were prospectively followed for 2 years.

ADC Values for Detecting Bowel Inflammation and Biologic Therapy Response in Patients With Crohn Disease: A Post Hoc Prospective Trial Analysis.

New biologic agents for Crohn disease (CD) create a need for noninvasive disease markers. DWI may assess bowel inflammation without contrast agents. The purpose of this study was to evaluate ADC values for identifying bowel inflammation and therapeutic response in patients with CD treated with biologic therapy.

De-escalating therapy in inflammatory bowel disease: Results from an observational study in clinical practice.

Background And Objectives: Combination therapy with an immunomodulator (IMM) and an anti-TNF is commonly recommended in Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) patients. However, little is known about relapse rates after therapeutic de-escalation. This study aimed to evaluate the risk of relapse in a cohort of UC and CD patients with long-standing clinical remission after discontinuation of IMM or anti-TNF and to identify predictive factors for relapse.

Contemporary Imaging Assessment of Strictures and Fibrosis in Crohn Disease, With Focus on Quantitative Biomarkers: From the Special Series on Imaging of Fibrosis.

Patients with Crohn disease commonly have bowel strictures develop, which exhibit varying degrees of inflammation and fibrosis. Differentiation of the distinct inflammatory and fibrotic components of strictures is key for the optimization of therapeutic management and for the development of antifibrotic drugs. Cross-sectional imaging techniques, including ultrasound, CT, and MRI, allow evaluation of the full thickness of the bowel wall as well as extramural complications and associated mesenteric abnormalities.

Macrophage and neutrophil heterogeneity at single-cell spatial resolution in human inflammatory bowel disease.

Ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease are chronic inflammatory intestinal diseases with perplexing heterogeneity in disease manifestation and response to treatment. While the molecular basis for this heterogeneity remains uncharacterized, single-cell technologies allow us to explore the transcriptional states within tissues at an unprecedented resolution which could further understanding of these complex diseases. Here, we apply single-cell RNA-sequencing to human inflamed intestine and show that the largest differences among patients are present within the myeloid compartment including macrophages and neutrophils.

Predictors of bowel damage in the long-term progression of Crohn's disease.

Background: Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disorder that progresses to bowel damage (BD) over time. An image-based index, the Lémann index (LI), has been developed to measure cumulative BD.

Aim: To characterize the long-term progression of BD in CD based on changes in the LI and to determine risk factors for long-term progression.

Experimental and genetic evidence for the impact of and expression and variation in inflammatory bowel disease.

Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) are inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) resulting from the interaction of multiple environmental, genetic and immunological factors. and are paralogs encoding lymphocyte co-receptors involved in fine-tuning intracellular signals delivered upon antigen-specific recognition, microbial pattern recognition and cell adhesion. While and expression and variation is known to influence some immune-mediated inflammatory disorders, their role in IBD remains unclear.

Fecal Calprotectin for Small Bowel Crohn's Disease: Is It a Cutoff Issue?

(1) Background: Fecal calprotectin (FC) correlates well with colonic inflammatory activity of Crohn’s disease (CD); data about relation of FC and small bowel (SB) lesions are still contradictory. The main aim was to analyze the relationship between FC levels and SB inflammatory activity in patients with established or suspected Crohn’s disease, assessed by small bowel capsule endoscopy (SBCE) or magnetic resonance enterography (MRE). (2) Methods: Two cohorts of patients were included: 1.

In vivo computer-aided diagnosis of colorectal polyps using white light endoscopy.

 Artificial intelligence is currently able to accurately predict the histology of colorectal polyps. However, systems developed to date use complex optical technologies and have not been tested in vivo. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a new deep learning-based optical diagnosis system, ATENEA, in a real clinical setting using only high-definition white light endoscopy (WLE) and to compare its performance with endoscopists.

Dissecting Common and Unique Effects of Anti-α4β7 and Anti-Tumor Necrosis Factor Treatment in Ulcerative Colitis.

Background And Aims: Vedolizumab is an anti-α4β7 antibody approved for the treatment of ulcerative colitis [UC]. Although it is assumed that vedolizumab blocks intestinal homing of lymphocytes, its effects on different intestinal cell populations are not fully stablished. In order to establish the unique mechanisms of action of vedolizumab in UC patients, we compared its effects to those induced by anti-tumour necrosis factor [TNF].

Pre-treatment magnetic resonance enterography findings predict the response to TNF-alpha inhibitors in Crohn's disease.

Background: Identifying predictors of therapeutic response is the cornerstone of personalised medicine.

Aim: To identify predictors of long-term healing of severe inflammatory lesions based on magnetic resonance enterography (MRE) findings in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) treated with tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) inhibitors.

Methods: This prospective longitudinal single-centre study included patients with clinically active CD requiring treatment with TNF-α inhibitors with at least one intestinal segment with a severe inflammatory lesion detected by MRE (segmental MaRIA ≥11).