Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Aug;66(8):2712-2716.
doi: 10.1007/s10620-020-06553-3. Epub 2020 Aug 18.

Crohn's Disease Only Visible on Small Bowel Capsule Endoscopy: A New Entity

Thomas Chateau  1   2 , Ferdinando Damico  2   3 , Camille Zallot  2 , Nicolas Mathieu  1 , Laurent Peyrin-Biroulet  4
Affiliations

Crohn's Disease Only Visible on Small Bowel Capsule Endoscopy: A New Entity

Thomas Chateau et al. Dig Dis Sci. 2021 Aug.

Erratum in

Abstract

Background and aims: In rare cases, the diagnosis of Crohn's disease (CD) can only be achieved using small bowel capsule endoscopy (SBCE). We investigate the characteristics of patients with CD only visible on SBCE and assess their disease course.

Methods: Data of all adult patients with confirmed CD diagnosis based on SBCE with normal endoscopic and cross-sectional imaging findings were retrospectively collected in three tertiary-level hospitals from January 2014 to March 2020.

Results: Thirteen patients were included. Ten patients were females, and the mean age at diagnosis was 36 years. Ileum was mostly involved (85%), while duodenum and jejunum were affected in 23% and 38% of the cases, respectively. Nine patients had one segment involved, while four subjects had two or three segments affected. All patients had inflammatory behavior. First treatment consisted of steroids in all cases, and six patients were later treated with immunosuppressant or biologics. After a mean follow-up of 27.5 months, no change in disease behavior, hospitalization, or CD-related surgery was observed.

Conclusions: CD only visible at SBCE is a rare condition with a more favorable disease course compared to general CD with a lower rate of complicated behavior, hospitalization, and surgery, despite a similar use of immunosuppressant or biologics.

Keywords: Capsule endoscopy; Crohn’s disease; Diagnosis; Natural history.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Torres J, Mehandru S, Colombel JF, et al. Crohn’s disease. Lancet. 2017;389:1741–1755. - DOI
    1. Gomollón F, Dignass A, Annese V, et al. 3rd European evidence-based consensus on the diagnosis and management of Crohn’s disease 2016: part 1: diagnosis and medical management. J Crohn Colitis. 2017;11:3–25. - DOI
    1. Peyrin-Biroulet L, Loftus EV Jr, Colombel JF, Sandborn WJ. The natural history of adult Crohn’s disease in population-based cohorts. Am J Gastroenterol. 2010;105:289–297. - DOI
    1. Maaser C, Sturm A, Vavricka SR, et al. ECCO-ESGAR guideline for diagnostic assessment in IBD part 1: initial diagnosis, monitoring of known IBD, detection of complications. J Crohns Colitis. 2019;13:144–164. - DOI
    1. Manes G, Imbesi V, Ardizzone S, et al. Use of double-balloon enteroscopy in the management of patients with Crohn’s disease: feasibility and diagnostic yield in a high-volume centre for inflammatory bowel disease. Surg Endosc. 2009;23:2790–2795. - DOI

LinkOut - more resources