Tens of trillions of microorganisms constitute the gut microbiota of the human body. The microbiota plays a critical role in maintaining host immunity and metabolism. Analyses of the gut microbial composition in Korea are limited to a few studies consisting of small sample sizes. To investigate the gut microbial community in a large sample of healthy Koreans, we analyzed the 16S ribosomal RNA of 4 representative bacterial genera
A total of 378 DNA samples extracted from 164 infants and 214 adults were analyzed using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction.
Analysis of 16S ribosomal RNA of 4 representative bacterial genera
To the best of our knowledge, this was the first study evaluating the distinct characteristics of the microbial community of Korean infants and adults. The differences between the 2 populations suggest that external factors such as age, diet, and the environment are important contributing factors to the change in gut microbial composition during development.
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Tofacitinib is an oral, small-molecule Janus kinase inhibitor being investigated for ulcerative colitis (UC). In OCTAVE Induction 1 and 2, patients with moderately to severely active UC received placebo or tofacitinib 10 mg twice daily (BID) for 8 weeks. Clinical responders in OCTAVE Induction were re-randomized to 52 weeks' therapy with placebo, tofacitinib 5 mg BID, or tofacitinib 10 mg BID.
We conducted
A total of 121 East Asian (Japan, Korea, and Taiwan) patients were randomized in OCTAVE Induction 1 and 2 (placebo, n=26; tofacitinib 10 mg BID, n=95), and 63 in OCTAVE Sustain (placebo, n=20; tofacitinib 5 mg BID, n=22; tofacitinib 10 mg BID, n=21). At week 8 of OCTAVE Induction 1 and 2, 18.9% of patients (18/95) achieved remission with tofacitinib 10 mg BID versus 3.8% (1/26) with placebo. In OCTAVE Sustain, the week 52 remission rates were 45.5% (10/22), 47.6% (10/21), and 15.0% (3/20) with 5 mg BID, 10 mg BID, and placebo, respectively. Adverse event rates were similar between groups in OCTAVE Induction and numerically higher with tofacitinib in OCTAVE Sustain. Serious adverse event rates were similar across groups in all studies. Infections were numerically more frequent with tofacitinib than placebo. Increases in serum lipid levels were observed with tofacitinib.
In East Asian patients with UC, tofacitinib demonstrated numerically greater efficacy versus placebo as induction and maintenance therapy, with a safety profile consistent with the global study population.
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Decreased trough levels of infliximab (TLI) and antibodies to infliximab (ATI) are associated with loss of response (LOR) in Crohn's disease. Two prospective studies were conducted to determine whether TLI or ATI better correlates with LOR (Study 1), and whether TLI could become a predictor of mucosal healing (MH) (Study 2).
Study 1 was conducted in 108 patients, including those with LOR and remission to compare ATI and TLI in discriminating the 2 conditions based on receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses. Study 2 involved 35 patients who were evaluated endoscopically.
In Study 1, there were no differences between the 2 assays in ROC curve analyses; the TLI cutoff value for LOR was 2.6 µg/mL (sensitivity, 70.9%; specificity, 79.2%), and the ATI cutoff value was 4.9 µg/mL (sensitivity, 65.5%; specificity, 67.9%). The AUROC (area under the ROC curve) of TLI was greater than that of ATI. AUROC was useful for discriminating between the 2 conditions. In Study 2, the TLI was significantly higher in the colonic MH group than in the non-MH group (2.7 µg/mL vs. 0.5 µg/mL,
TLI is better than ATI for clinically diagnosing LOR, and a correlation was observed between TLI and colonic MH.
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This study aimed to compare the clinical characteristics and management patterns of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients in a secondary hospital (SH) with those in tertiary referral centers (TRC).
Data from IBD patients in SH and 2 TRCs were retrospectively reviewed. The cumulative thiopurine use rate was compared between hospitals after controlling for different baseline characteristics using propensity score matching.
Among the total of 447 patients with IBD, 178 Crohn's disease (CD) and 269 ulcerative colitis (UC) patients were included. Regarding initial CD symptoms, patients from SH were more likely to show perianal symptoms, such as anal pain or discharge (56.6% vs. 34.3%,
The clinical characteristics and management of the IBD patients in SH were substantially different from those in TRCs. Thiopurine treatment was less commonly used for SH patients.
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Sessile serrated adenomas (SSAs) are known to be precursors of colorectal cancer (CRC). The proper interval of follow-up colonoscopy for SSAs is still being debated. We sought to determine the proper interval of colonoscopy surveillance in patients diagnosed with SSAs in South Korea.
We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients diagnosed with SSAs who received 1 or more follow-up colonoscopies. The information reviewed included patient baseline characteristics, SSA characteristics, and colonoscopy information.
From January 2007 to December 2011, 152 SSAs and 8 synchronous adenocarcinomas were identified in 138 patients. The mean age of the patients was 62.2 years and 60.1% patients were men. SSAs were located in the right colon (i.e., from the cecum to the hepatic flexure) in 68.4% patients. At the first follow-up, 27 SSAs were identified in 138 patients (right colon, 66.7%). At the second follow-up, 6 SSAs were identified in 65 patients (right colon, 66.7%). At the 3rd and 4th follow-up, 21 and 11 patients underwent colonoscopy, respectively, and no SSAs were detected. The total mean follow-up duration was 33.9 months. The mean size of SSAs was 8.1±5.0 mm. SSAs were most commonly found in the right colon (126/185, 68.1%). During annual follow-up colonoscopy surveillance, no cancer was detected.
Annual colonoscopy surveillance is not necessary for identifying new CRCs in all patients diagnosed with SSAs. In addition, the right colon should be examined more carefully because SSAs occur more frequently in the right colon during initial and follow-up colonoscopies.
Citations
Colonoscopic surveillance is currently recommended after polypectomy owing to the risk of newly developed colonic neoplasia. However, few studies have investigated colonoscopy surveillance in Asia. This multicenter and prospective study was undertaken to assess the incidence of advanced adenoma based on baseline adenoma findings at 3 years after colonoscopic polypectomy.
A total of 1,323 patients undergoing colonoscopic polypectomy were prospectively assigned to 3-year colonoscopy surveillance at 11 tertiary endoscopic centers. Relative risks for advanced adenoma after 3 years were calculated according to baseline adenoma characteristics.
Among 1,323 patients enrolled, 387 patients (29.3%) were followed up, and the mean follow-up interval was 31.0±9.8 months. The percentage of patients with advanced adenoma on baseline colonoscopy was higher in the surveillance group compared to the non-surveillance group (34.4% vs. 25.7%). Advanced adenoma recurrence was observed in 17 patients (4.4%) at follow-up. The risk of advanced adenoma recurrence was 2 times greater in patients with baseline advanced adenoma than in those with baseline non-advanced adenoma, though the difference was not statistically significant (6.8% [9/133] vs. 3.1% [8/254],
A colonoscopy surveillance interval of 3 years in patients with baseline advanced adenoma can be considered appropriate.
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Aberrant crypt foci (ACF) are early microscopic lesions of the colonic mucosa, which can be detected by magnified chromoendoscopy. Herein, we have investigated whether ACF identified in different clinical groups can be differentiated based on their characteristics.
Macroscopically unremarkable mucosal flaps were collected from 270 fresh colectomies and divided into 3 clinical groups: colorectal carcinoma (group A), disease controls having known pre-neoplastic potential (group Bc), and disease controls without risk of carcinoma development (group Bn). Topographic and histologic analysis, immunohistochemistry, and molecular studies (high-resolution melt curve analysis, real-time polymerase chain reaction, and Sanger sequencing) were conducted for certain neoplasia-associated markers.
ACF were seen in 107 cases, out of which 72 were left colonic ACF and 35 right colonic ACF (67.2% vs. 32.7%,
Left colonic ACF appear to be high-risk based on their morphological and prototypic tumor marker signature. ACF identified in different clinical groups do not show significant genotypic or topographic differences. Further detailed genetic studies are required to elucidate them further.
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The incidence and severity of
A retrospective study was conducted to compare CDI diagnosis methods between January 2014 and December 2014. The stool samples, which were obtained in presumptive CDI patients, were compared for their diagnostic accuracy and rapidity, including real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of toxin genes,
A total of 207 cases from 116 patients were enrolled in this study and 117 cases (56.5%) were diagnosed as having CDI. Among the 117 cases, the sensitivities of real-time PCR,
We confirmed that real-time PCR of toxin genes is the most effective diagnostic method for accurate and early diagnosis of CDI. It also helps to diagnose hypervirulent CDI, such as ribotype 027 infection.
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Colorectal cancer (CRC) is now a major public health problem with heavy morbidity and mortality in rural Africans despite the lingering dietary fiber-rich foodstuffs consumption. Studies have shown that increased intake of dietary fiber which contribute to low fecal pH and also influences the activity of intestinal microbiota, is associated with a lowered risk for CRC. However, whether or not the apparent high dietary fiber consumption by Africans do not longer protects against CRC risk is unknown. This study evaluated dietary fiber intake, fecal fiber components and pH levels in CRC patients.
Thirty-five subjects (CRC=21, control=14), mean age 45 years were recruited for the study. A truncated food frequency questionnaire and modified Goering and Van Soest procedures were used.
We found that all subjects consumed variety of dietary fiber-rich foodstuffs. There is slight preponderance in consumption of dietary fiber by the control group than the CRC patients. We also found a significant difference in the mean fecal neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, hemicellulose, cellulose and lignin contents from the CRC patients compared to the controls (
The identified differences in the fecal fiber components and stool pH levels between the 2 groups may relate to CRC incidence and mortality in rural Africans. There is crucial need for more hypothesis-driven research with adequate funding on the cumulative preventive role of dietary fiber-rich foodstuffs against colorectal cancer in rural Africans “today.”
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To determine the prevalence of glycoprotein B (gB), glycoprotein N (gN), and glycoprotein H (gH) genotypes of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) superimposed on ulcerative colitis (UC) patients in Japan.
Four archived stool samples and 7-archived extracted DNA from stool samples of 11 UC patients with positive multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) results for HCMV were used UL55 gene encoding gB, UL73 gene encoding gN, and UL75 gene encoding gH were identified by PCR. Genotypes of gB and glycoprotein N were determined by sequencing.
Among 11 samples, 8 samples were amplified through PCR. gB, gN, and gH genotypes were successfully detected in 3 of 8 (37.5%), 4 of 8 (50%), and 8 of 8 (100%), respectively. The distribution of gB and gN genotypes analyzed through phylogenetic analysis were as follows: gB1 (2/3, 66.7%), gB3 (1/3, 33.3%), gN3a (2/4, 50%), and gN3b (2/4, 50%). Other gB genotypes (gB2 and gB4) and gN genotypes (gN1, gN2, and gN4) were not detected in this study. Out of successfully amplified 8 samples of gH genotype, gH1 and gH2 were distributed in 12.5% and 75% samples, respectively. Only 1 sample revealed mixed infection of gH genotype. The distribution of gH1 and gH2 differed significantly (1:6,
In this study, gB1, gN3, and gH2 gene were determined as the most frequently observed genotypes in UC patients, which suggest that there might be an association between these genotypes of HCMV and UC.
Citations
Data on the efficacy and safety of the adalimumab biosimilar Exemptia are limited.
Patients with moderate-to-severe active steroid-refractory ulcerative colitis (UC) treated at Dayanand Medical College and Hospital, India were offered cyclosporine A, biologicals or biosimilars, or surgery. A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients who were treated with the adalimumab biosimilar, Exemptia. These patients were administered an induction dosing schedule of 160 mg Exemptia at week 0, 80 mg at week 2, and then 40 mg every other week from week 4 to 8. The clinical response and remission were assessed at week 8 using Mayo score.
A total of 29 patients (62.1% male; mean age, 34.9 ± 9.7 years) with moderate-to-severe steroid-refractory active UC (mean disease duration, 6.3±5.1 years; pancolitis in 9 patients [31.1%]; left-sided colitis in 20 patients [68.9%]) were treated with the Exemptia induction dosing schedule. The mean Mayo score at presentation was 8.2±1.4. At week 8, clinical response was observed in 7 patients (24.1%), whereas clinical remission was observed only in 1 patient (3.5%). Among the non-responders (n=21), 4 patients required colectomy, 1 died, 1 was lost to follow-up, 10 were offered fecal microbiota transplant, 3 were administered infliximab, and 2 patients were administered cyclosporine and tacrolimus, respectively. Four patients (13.8%) developed extrapulmonary tuberculosis.
The adalimumab biosimilar Exemptia has limited efficacy for the attainment of clinical response and remission in moderate-to-severe steroid-refractory UC, with a significant risk of acquisition or reactivation of tuberculosis in developing countries such as India.
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The efficacy of anti-tumor necrosis factor α (anti-TNFα) antibodies for postoperative Crohn's disease (CD) in patients who were treated with these agents prior to surgery is largely unknown.
CD patients who underwent intestinal resection and received anti-TNFα agents after surgery were divided into 2 groups according to the presence or absence of preoperative anti-TNFα treatment: anti-TNFα restart group or anti-TNFα naïve group. Endoscopic recurrence after surgery was examined according to the preoperative conditions, including administration of anti-TNFα agents before surgery.
Thirty-six patients received anti-TNFα antibody after surgery: 22 in the anti-TNFα restart group and 14 in the anti-TNFα naïve group. Endoscopic recurrence after surgery was more frequently observed in the anti-TNFα restart group than in the anti-TNFα naïve group (68% vs. 14%,
The efficacy of restarting anti-TNFα antibody treatment after surgery was limited, and treatment intensification or a change to different classes of biologics should be considered for those patients.
Citations
Truelove and Witts criteria have been used to define acute severe colitis since the 1950s. However, hemoglobin (an additional criterion of the definition) levels in the general population in developing countries are lower than in the population of developed countries. We aimed to determine the relevance of Truelove and Witts criteria in the Indian population.
Consecutive patients with acute severe colitis satisfying the Truelove and Witts criteria, hospitalized at a single center between April 2015 and December 2016 were included. All patients received intravenous corticosteroids and 16 required colectomy. The hemoglobin levels at admission were subsequently excluded from the classification criteria, and the effect this had on the criteria for diagnosis was determined.
Out of 61 patients of acute severe colitis diagnosed according to the original Truelove and Witts criteria, 12 patients (20%) had 1 additional criterion, 33 (54%) had 2 additional criteria and 16 (26%) had 3 or more additional criteria in addition to 6 or more blood stained stools on admission. On excluding hemoglobin as an additional criterion from the Truelove and Witts definition, all patients still met the criteria for acute severe colitis.
Truelove and Witts criteria can be used to define acute severe colitis in India, despite lower mean hemoglobin in the native population.
Citations
Relationship Between Vitamin D Deficiency and Disease Activity in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease in Ahvaz, Iran
The use of anti-tumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) agents seems to reduce surgical rates and delay surgical procedures in prospective trials and population-based studies in the management of Crohn's disease (CD). This study aimed to identify whether preoperative anti-TNF agents influence the time from diagnosis to surgery.
An observational retrospective cohort study was conducted on patients with CD submitted to intestinal resections due to complications or medical therapy failure in a period of 7 years. The patients were allocated into 2 groups according to their previous exposure to anti-TNF agents in the preoperative period. Epidemiological aspects regarding age at diagnosis, smoking, perianal disease, and preoperative conventional therapy were considered. A Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to outline possible differences between the groups regarding the time to surgery.
A total of 123 patients were included (71 and 52 with and without previous exposure to biologics, respectively). The overall time to surgery was 108±6.9 months (maximum, 276 months). The survival estimation revealed no difference in the mean time to intestinal resection between the groups (99.78±10.62 months in the patients without and 114.01±9.07 months in those with previous anti-TNF use) (log-rank
The time from diagnosis to surgery was not influenced by the preoperative use of anti-TNF therapy in this cohort of patients.
Citations
The therapeutic goal for treating ulcerative colitis (UC) patients has shifted to achieving mucosal healing over the past few years. However, at present, limited data is available on the correlation between endoscopic findings and histological remission in patients with endoscopic mucosal healing.
This was a prospective observational study conducted over a period of 18 months (January 2014 to June 2015) at Dayanand Medical College and Hospital, Ludhiana, Punjab, India. Patients diagnosed with UC who had been in clinical remission (n=76) for at least 6 months were evaluated for endoscopic remission. Those in endoscopic remission (Mayo score ≤1; 46/76, 60.5%) were subjected to multiple biopsies from the rectosigmoid region and histological remission, which was then defined as grade 0/1 as per the Geboes criteria.
Of the 46 patients in endoscopic remission (age, 18–73 years; male:female=1.5:1.0), majority had E1 (proctitis) disease (21/46, 45.6%) followed by E2 (left sided colitis) (18/46, 39.1%) and E3 disease (pancolitis) (7/46, 15.2%) at baseline. Histological remission was noted in 67.3% (31/46) of the patients, while 32.7% (15/46) still retained the histologically active disease in the form of infiltration of the lamina propria by eosinophils and neutrophils (13/15, 86.6%), cryptitis (14/15, 93.3%), and crypt abscesses (8/15, 53.3%). On follow-up, after 1 year, 87.1% (27/31) of the patients who had been in histological remission remained clinically asymptomatic, while 12.9% (4/31) had relapsed. Among the 15 histologically active patients, 46.6% (7/15) remained in clinical remission, while 53.3% (8/15) had relapsed.
Histological remission, rather than endoscopic remission, predicts a sustained clinical remission and allows monitoring of therapy for the subsequent disease course in patients with UC.
Citations
Patients with small bowel strictures have varied etiologies, including malignancy. Little data are available on the demographic profiles and etiologies of small bowel strictures in patients who undergo surgery because of intestinal obstruction but do not have a definitive pre-operative diagnosis.
Retrospective data were analyzed for all patients operated between January 2000 and October 2014 for small bowel strictures without mass lesions and a definite diagnosis after imaging and endoscopic examinations. Demographic parameters, imaging, endoscopic, and histological data were extracted from the medical records. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to identify factors that could differentiate between intestinal tuberculosis (ITB) and Crohn's disease (CD) and between malignant and benign strictures.
Of the 7,425 reviewed medical records, 89 met the inclusion criteria. The most common site of strictures was the proximal small intestine (41.5%). The most common histological diagnoses in patients with small bowel strictures were ITB (26.9%), CD (23.5%), non-specific strictures (20.2%), malignancy (15.5%), ischemia (10.1%), and other complications (3.4%). Patients with malignant strictures were older than patients with benign etiologies (47.6±15.9 years vs. 37.4±16.4 years,
Malignancy was the cause of small bowel strictures in approximately 16% patients, especially among older patients with a single stricture in the proximal location. Empirical therapy should be avoided and the threshold for surgical resection is low in these patients.
Citations
There is substantial evidence supporting a role of inflammation in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer; however, little is known about the association between serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and the risk of colorectal adenoma. This study was conducted to investigate the association between serum CRP and colorectal adenoma risk.
A retrospective cross-sectional study was performed on first-time screening colonoscopies in asymptomatic subjects who also had their serum CRP level measured during a routine health check-up between September 2006 and September 2009 in Korea. Serum CRP level was compared between high-risk and low-risk adenoma groups and independent predictors of high-risk adenoma were analyzed using multivariate regression analysis.
Among the 3,309 eligible patients, the high-risk adenoma group had higher serum CRP levels than the low-risk adenoma group (
High CRP level is associated with high-risk adenoma in both men and women. Our data may support the association between chronic inflammation and colorectal neoplasia, which warrants further investigation.
Citations
Precutting before endoscopic piecemeal mucosal resection (EPMR) may increase colorectal polyp resection effectiveness. We aimed to identify risk factors for recurrence after conventional EPMR (CEPMR) and precut EPMR (PEPMR) and investigated endoscopic treatment outcomes for recurrent cases.
The medical records of patients with colorectal polyps treated by EPMR were analyzed. Patients without follow-up surveillance colonoscopies were excluded.
Among 359 lesions, the local recurrence rate on the first surveillance colonoscopy was 5.8% (18/312) and 6.4% (3/47) after CEPMR and PEPMR, respectively. Among lesions without recurrence at the first surveillance colonoscopy, the rates of late recurrence on subsequent surveillance colonoscopy were 3.9% (6/152) and 0% after CEPMR and PEPMR, respectively. Larger tumor size was the only independent risk factor for recurrence (odds ratio, 7.93; 95% confidence interval, 1.95–32.30;
The local recurrence rates after CEPMR and PEPMR were similar. Larger tumor size was an independent risk factor for local recurrence after EPMR. Endoscopic treatment of recurrences resulted in high cure rates, although combination methods were necessary in many cases.
Citations
Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening using stool DNA was recently found to yield good detection rates. A multi-target stool DNA test (Cologuard®, Exact Sciences), including methylated genes has been recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The aim of this study was to validate these aberrantly methylated genes as stool-based DNA markers for detecting CRC and colorectal advanced adenoma (AA) in the Korean population.
A single-center study was conducted in 36 patients with AA; 35 patients with CRC; and 40 endoscopically diagnosed healthy controls using CRC screening colonoscopy. The methylation status of the
Methylated
Our results demonstrate that the
Citations
In Taiwan, due to budget limitations, the National Health Insurance only allows for a limited period of biologics use in treating moderate to severe Crohn's disease (CD). We aimed to access the outcomes of CD patients following a limited period use of biologics, specifically focusing on the relapse rate and remission duration; also the response rate to second use when applicable.
This was a multicenter, retrospective, observational study and we enrolled CD patients who had been treated with adalimumab (ADA) according to the insurance guidelines from 2009 to 2015.
A total of 54 CD patients, with follow-up of more than 6 months after the withdrawal of ADA, were enrolled. The average period of treatment with ADA was 16.7±9.7 months. After discontinuing ADA, 59.3% patients suffered a clinical relapse. In the univariate analysis, the reason for withdrawal was a risk factor for relapse (
Fifty-nine percent of patients experienced a relapse after discontinuing the limited period of ADA treatment, and most of them occurred within 1 year following cessation. Male sex and current smoker were risk factors for relapse. Though 60.4% of the relapse patients responded to ADA again.
Citations
Efficacy and safety of ustekinumab were evaluated in a Japanese subpopulation with moderately to severely active Crohn's disease (CD) in UNITI-1, UNITI-2 and IM-UNITI studies and results were compared with the overall population.
Overall, patients in UNITI-1 (Japan, n=56; failed response to tumor necrosis factor antagonist) and UNITI-2 (Japan, n=26; failed response to prior conventional therapy) were randomized to placebo or ustekinumab intravenous induction (130 mg or ~6 mg/kg) at week 0. Responders to ustekinumab induction therapy (Japan, n=21) were randomized to placebo or ustekinumab (90 mg, subcutaneous) maintenance (every 12 weeks [q12w] or 8 weeks [q8w]) in IM-UNITI. The primary endpoint was clinical response at week 6 for induction studies and clinical remission at week 44 for maintenance study.
Percentage of patients achieving clinical response at week 6 was greater in ustekinumab 130 mg and ~6 mg/kg groups than in the placebo group (UNITI-1: 36.8% and 31.6% vs. 27.8%, respectively, for Japanese; 34.3% and 33.7% vs. 21.5%, respectively, for overall; UNITI-2: 37.5% and 55.6% vs. 11.1%, respectively, for Japanese; 51.7% and 55.5% vs. 28.7%, respectively, for overall). Clinical remission rate at week 44 during maintenance was greater in the ustekinumab 90 mg SC q12w and q8w groups than in the placebo group (50.0% and 55.6% vs. 25.0%, respectively, for Japanese; 48.8% and 53.1% vs. 35.9%, respectively, for overall). Efficacy and safety results observed in the Japanese subpopulation were generally consistent with those in the overall population.
Ustekinumab could be considered as a new therapeutic option for moderately to severely active CD in Japanese patients. Both ustekinumab induction and maintenance treatments were generally well tolerated (Clinical Trial Registration: NCT01369329, NCT01369342, NCT01369355).
Citations
Although the role of capsule endoscopy (CE) in Crohn's disease (CD) has expanded, CE is not used routinely for diagnosing and evaluating CD in Korea. We aimed to investigate current patterns of practice and evaluate the clinical significance of the use of CE in CD in Korean patients.
Among 651 CE procedures performed for various indications, we retrospectively analyzed the medical records of patients who underwent CE in 57 cases of suspected CD (sCD) and 14 cases of established CD (eCD).
In the sCD group, CE was most commonly used for the initial diagnosis of CD (54.4%). Capsule retention was found in only 1 patient in the eCD group (1/71, 1.4%). In the sCD group, 28.1% of patients were diagnosed with CD on the basis of CE findings; other diseases diagnosed included tuberculous enteritis (7.0%), non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug-induced enteropathy (5.3%), and other enteritis (17.5%). Only 11.5% of patients with eCD (14/122) underwent CE. The indication for CE in the 14 patients with eCD was to assess disease extent and activity. The overall diagnostic yield of CE was 59.7%. Therapeutic strategies were changed in 70.2% of patients in the sCD group and 50% of those in the eCD group based on CE findings.
In clinical practice, CE was most commonly indicated for the initial diagnosis of CD and was not generally performed in patients with eCD. CE appears to be an effective diagnostic modality for evaluating sCD and is useful for determining therapeutic strategies for patients with sCD and those with eCD.
Citations
Colonoscopic polypectomy is the best diagnostic and therapeutic tool to detect and prevent colorectal neoplasms. However, previous studies have reported that 17% to 28% of colorectal polyps are missed during colonoscopy. We investigated the miss rate of neoplastic polyps and the factors associated with missed polyps from quality-adjusted consecutive colonoscopies.
We reviewed the medical records of patients who were found to have colorectal polyps at a medical examination center of the Kangbuk Samsung Hospital between March 2012 and February 2013. Patients who were referred to a single tertiary academic medical center and underwent colonoscopic polypectomy on the same day were enrolled in our study. The odds ratios (ORs) associated with polyp-related and patient-related factors were evaluated using logistic regression analyses.
A total of 463 patients and 1,294 neoplastic polyps were analyzed. The miss rates for adenomas, advanced adenomas, and carcinomas were 24.1% (312/1,294), 1.2% (15/1,294), and 0% (0/1,294), respectively. Flat/sessile-shaped adenomas (adjusted OR, 3.62; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.40–5.46) and smaller adenomas (adjusted OR, 5.63; 95% CI, 2.84– 11.15 for ≤5 mm; adjusted OR, 3.18; 95% CI, 1.60–6.30 for 6–9 mm, respectively) were more frequently missed than pedunculated/sub-pedunculated adenomas and larger adenomas. In patients with 2 or more polyps compared with only one detected (adjusted OR, 2.37; 95% CI, 1.55–3.61 for 2–4 polyps; adjusted OR, 11.52; 95% CI, 4.61–28.79 for ≥5 polyps, respectively) during the first endoscopy, the risk of missing an additional polyp was significantly higher.
One-quarter of neoplastic polyps was missed during colonoscopy. We encourage endoscopists to detect smaller and flat or sessile polyps by using the optimal withdrawal technique.
Citations
Serrated polyposis syndrome (SPS) has been shown to increase the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC). However, little is known about the characteristics of Asian patients with SPS. This study aimed to identify the clinicopathological features and risk of CRC in Korean patients with SPS as well as the differences between Korean and Western patients based on a literature review.
This retrospective study included 30 patients with SPS as defined by World Health Organization classification treated at Samsung Medical Center, Korea, between March 1999 and May 2011.
Twenty patients (67%) were male. The median patient age at diagnosis was 56 years (range, 39–76 years). A total of 702 polyps were identified during a median follow-up of 43 months (range, 0–149 months). Serrated polyps were noted more frequently in the distal colon (298/702, 55%). However, large serrated polyps and serrated adenomas were mainly distributed throughout the proximal colon (75% vs. 25% and 81% vs. 19%, respectively); 73.3% had synchronous adenomatous polyps. The incidence of CRC was 10% (3/30 patients), but no interval CRC was detected. A total of 87% of the patients underwent esophagogastroduodenoscopy and 19.2% had significant lesions.
The phenotype of SPS in Korean patients is different from that of Western patients. In Korean patients, SPS is more common in men, there were fewer total numbers of serrated adenoma/polyps, and the incidence of CRC was lower than that in Western patients. Korean patients tend to more frequently have abnormal gastric lesions. However, the prevalence of synchronous adenomatous polyps is high in both Western and Korean patients.
Citations
Intestinal Behçet's disease (BD) is an immune-mediated inflammatory disorder. We followed up the patients and evaluated safety profile and effectiveness of adalimumab for the treatment of intestinal BD through 100 weeks rolled over from the 52 week clinical trial (NCT01243671).
Patients initiated adalimumab therapy at 160 mg at week 0, followed by 80 mg at week 2, followed by 40 mg every other week until the end of the study. Long-term safety and all adverse events (AEs) were examined. The efficacy was assessed on the basis of marked improvement (MI) and complete remission (CR) using a composite efficacy index, which combined global gastrointestinal symptoms and endoscopic assessments.
Twenty patients were enrolled in this study; 15 patients received adalimumab treatment until study completion. The incidence of AEs through week 100 was 544.4 events/100 person-years, which was comparable to the incidence through week 52 (560.4 events/100 person-years). No unexpected trend was observed and adalimumab was well tolerated. At weeks 52 and 100, 60.0% and 40.0% of patients showed MI, respectively, and 20.0% and 15.0% of patients showed CR, respectively.
This report demonstrates 2 years safety and effectiveness of adalimumab in intestinal BD patients. Patients with intestinal BD refractory to conventional treatment receiving up to 2 years of adalimumab treatment demonstrated safety outcomes consistent with the known profile of adalimumab, and the treatment led to sustained reduction of clinical and endoscopic disease activity.
Citations
Familial occurrence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is well documented. Reports from Western countries have shown a higher familial occurrence of ulcerative colitis (UC) in first- and second-degree relatives than that in the Asian UC population. No data are currently available from the Indian subcontinent in this regard. We present our data on the familial aggregation of UC.
Records of patients with UC followed at the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Clinic at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi from August 2004 to January 2016 were reviewed. Details regarding the prevalence of family history and characteristics of these patients were recorded. Affected family members were contacted and disease characteristics were noted for assessment of familial aggregation.
Of the 2,058 UC patients included in the analysis, a positive family history of IBD was confirmed in 31 patients (1.5%), 24 (77.4%) of whom had only first-degree relatives affected. All the affected relatives had UC and none had Crohn's disease. Among first-degree relatives, siblings were found to have the highest prevalence of IBD (53.3%), followed by parents (26.7%).
The probability of occurrence of IBD in family members of affected North Indian UC patients is lower than that reported in Western populations.
Citations
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), has been reported to have various ophthalmologic manifestations. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of ophthalmologic manifestations associated with IBD in Korea.
Sixty-one patients were examined between May 2013 and October 2014. We performed complete ophthalmologic examinations.
Findings included 36 patients with CD and 25 with UC. The mean age of the patients was 34±16 years and disease duration was 45.3±23.9 months. Ophthalmologic manifestations were positive in 44 cases. Primary complication was diagnosed in 5 cases, as follows; iritis in 2 cases, episcleritis in one case, iritis with optic neuritis in 1 case, and serous retinal detachment in 1 case, without secondary complications. The most common coincidental complication was dry eye syndrome (DES), in 35 patients (57.4%). The prevalence of DES in the control group was 21.3%. The proportion of DES in patients with IBD was significantly higher than in the control group (
Ophthalmologic manifestations were high (72.1%) in IBD patients. Clinically significant primary ocular inflammation occurred in 8.2% of patients. The most common complication was DES. There was a higher rate of DES in patients with IBD compared to the control group. Evaluation of the eye should be a routine component in patients with IBD.
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This study assessed the efficacy and safety of high-dose multimatrix mesalazine once-daily (QD) compared to another form of high-dose mesalazine.
In this multicenter, randomized, double-blind study, 280 patients with mildly to moderately active ulcerative colitis (UC) received multimatrix mesalazine 4.8 g/day QD or pH-dependent-release mesalazine 3.6 g/day three times daily for 8 weeks. The primary endpoint was the change in the UC-Disease Activity Index (UC-DAI) at the end of the treatment period.
The change in the UC-DAI (mean±standard deviation) in the per-protocol set was −2.6±2.47 in the multimatrix mesalazine 4.8 g/day group (n=134) and −1.8±2.64 in the pH-dependent-release mesalazine 3.6 g/day group (n=129). The difference in the mean change between the 2 groups was −0.7 (two-sided 95% confidence interval, −1.3 to −0.1). The noninferiority of multimatrix mesalazine 4.8 g/day to pH-dependent-release mesalazine 3.6 g/day was verified within the noninferiority margin (1.1). The superiority of multimatrix mesalazine 4.8 g/day to pH-dependent-release mesalazine 3.6 g/day was also investigated and confirmed in the full analysis set, according to the study protocol. In subgroup analyses, the effectiveness of multimatrix mesalazine 4.8 g/day was consistent in all subgroups. There was no difference in safety between the 2 treatment groups.
Multimatrix mesalazine 4.8 g/day has higher efficacy and shows no difference in safety in mildly to moderately active UC, in comparison with pH-dependent-release mesalazine 3.6 g/day.
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This study compared the efficacy of once-daily administration of multimatrix mesalazine 2.4 g/day with multiple-dose mesalazine for the maintenance of remission.
In this multicenter, randomized, double-blind study, 203 patients with ulcerative colitis in remission received multimatrix mesalazine 2.4 g/day once-daily or time-dependent (controlled-release) mesalazine 2.25 g/day 3 times-daily for 48 weeks. The primary efficacy endpoint was the proportion of patients without rectal bleeding.
The proportion of patients without rectal bleeding during the 48-week treatment period in the per protocol set was 84.8% (84/99) in the multimatrix mesalazine 2.4 g/day group and 78.0% (78/100) in the controlled-release mesalazine 2.25 g/day group. The difference between the 2 treatment groups was 6.8% (two-sided 95% confidence interval, −3.9% to 17.6%). The noninferiority margin of −10% was met in the comparison of multimatrix mesalazine 2.4 g/day once-daily with controlled-release mesalazine 2.25 g/day. Multimatrix mesalazine 2.4 g/day once-daily demonstrated consistent efficacy in all subgroups. There was no difference between the 2 treatment groups with regard to safety.
A once-daily dose of 2 multimatrix mesalazine tablets (2.4 g) was not inferior to controlled-release mesalazine 2.25 g/day 3 times-daily in maintaining absence of rectal bleeding in ulcerative colitis.
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Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is a molecule formed by lipids and polysaccharides and is the major cell wall component of gram-negative bacteria. High LPS levels are known to block CD26 expression by activating Toll-like receptor 4. The aim of this study was to correlate the serum levels of LPS and CD26 in Crohn's disease (CD) patients with serum levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukins, CD activity index, and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α).
Serum samples were collected from 27 individuals (10 with active CD, 10 with inactive CD, and 7 controls) and the levels of LPS, CD26, TNF-α, interleukin-1β (IL-1β), IL-6, IL-17, and CRP were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The levels of LPS and CD26 were then tested for correlation with TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-17, and CRP.
Serum levels of LPS were significantly elevated in the active CD group (
Individuals with CD exhibited higher serum levels of LPS varying from a 2- to 6-fold increase depending on disease activity, when compared with healthy controls. CD26 levels were lower in the CD groups. Both LPS and CD26 correlated with disease severity and serve as potential CD biomarkers.
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