Surgery for Crohn's disease and anti-TNF agents: the changing scenario

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy analysis reveals biochemical difference in urine of patients with perianal fistula

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Perianal fistulising Crohn's disease (PFCD) is different from the characteristics and outcomes of traditional non-inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) anal fistulas. The presence of perianal disease was a poor prognostic indicator for Crohn's disease (CD) patients and PFCD patients were more likely to bear an increased risk of recurrence. However, the effective and accurate diagnosis methods to early distinguish PFCD from simple perianal fistula were still scarce. The purpose of this study is to develop a non-invasive detecting approach to predict CD in patients with perianal fistulas.

METHODS

Data on patients with anal fistulizing disease were collected from July 2020 to September 2020 in two IBD centers. Urine samples from PFCD and simple perianal fistula patients were investigated by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Principal component analysis (PCA)-support vector machine (SVM) was utilized to establish classification models to distinguish PFCD from simple perianal fistula.

RESULTS

After a case-matched 1:1 selection by age and gender, 110 patients were included in the study. By analyzing the average SERS spectra of PFCD and simple perianal fistula patients, it revealed that there were significant differences in intensities at 11 Raman peaks. The established PCA-SVM model distinguished PFCD from simple perianal fistula with a sensitivity of 71.43%, specificity 80.00% and accuracy 75.71% in the leave-one-patient-out cross-validation. The accuracy of the model in validation cohort was 77.5%.

CONCLUSIONS

Investigation of urine samples by SERS helps clinicians to predict Crohn's disease from perianal fistulas, which make patients achieve benefit from a more individualized treatment strategy.

Anti-TNF Agents and New Biological Agents (Vedolizumab and Ustekinumab) in the Prevention and Treatment of Postoperative Recurrence After Surgery in Crohn's Disease

Surgery for Crohn's disease (CD) is not curative, as postoperative recurrence (POR) after ileocolonic resection is the rule in the absence of prophylactic treatment. In the present article, we critically review available data on the role of anti-tumour necrosis factor (TNF) agents and new biologics (including vedolizumab and ustekinumab) in the prevention and treatment of POR after surgery in CD. Several studies (summarised in various meta-analyses) have confirmed the efficacy of anti-TNFs in the prevention of POR. We identified 37 studies, including 1863 CD patients, with mean endoscopic POR at 6-12 months of 29%. Only few randomised controlled trials (RCTs) have directly compared thiopurines and anti-TNFs, with controversial results, although the superiority of the latter is supported by several meta-analyses. Infliximab and adalimumab seem equally effective. The combination of anti-TNFs and immunosuppressives should be considered in patients previously exposed to anti-TNFs. Several studies have shown that anti-TNFs remain an effective option to prevent POR also in patients with anti-TNF failure before surgery. In fact, the use of the same anti-TNF before and after surgery might be effective for the prevention of POR. Prophylactic anti-TNF treatment, once started, should be continued long term. Anti-TNFs are also effective for the treatment of established POR. Retreatment with anti-TNFs for POR is a valid strategy even after their preoperative failure. In six studies (including 156 patients) evaluating vedolizumab, mean endoscopic POR at 6-12 months was 41%. The non-randomised comparison of anti-TNFs and vedolizumab has provided controversial results. One placebo-controlled RCT confirmed that vedolizumab is quite effective in preventing POR in CD patients with increased risk of recurrence. Seven studies (including 162 patients) evaluated ustekinumab, with a mean endoscopic POR at 6-12 months of 41%. The comparative efficacy of ustekinumab and anti-TNFs is still unclear. Ustekinumab and vedolizumab seem to be equally effective, although the experience is very limited. In conclusion, to date, anti-TNFs are the most effective agents in preventing and treating POR in CD. Anti-TNFs remain an effective option to prevent POR also in patients with anti-TNF failure before surgery. Vedolizumab seems to be quite effective in the prevention of POR in patients with increased risk of recurrence. Ustekinumab is probably also effective in the postoperative setting, although the comparative efficacy with anti-TNFs or vedolizumab is still unclear.

Wireless Capsule Endoscopy for Diagnosis and Management of Post-Operative Recurrence of Crohn's Disease

Despite aggressive medical therapy, many patients with Crohn's disease require surgical intervention over time. After surgical resection, disease recurrence is common. Ileo-colonoscopy and the Rutgeerts score are commonly used for diagnosis and monitoring of post-operative endoscopic recurrence. The latter is the precursor of clinical recurrence and therefore it impacts prognosis and patient management. However, due to the limited length of bowel assessed by ileo-colonoscopy, this procedure can miss out-of-reach, more proximal lesions in the small bowel. This limitation introduces an important uncertainty when evaluating post-operative relapse by ileo-colonoscopy. In addition, the Rutgeerts score 'per se' bears a number of ambiguities. Here we will discuss the pros and cons of ileo-colonoscopy and other imaging studies including wireless capsule endoscopy to diagnose and manage post-operative recurrence of Crohn's disease. A number of studies provide evidence that wireless capsule endoscopy is a potentially more accurate as well as less invasive and less costly alternative to conventional techniques including ileo-colonoscopy.

Risk factors for postoperative complications in Crohn disease: analysis of 173 patients

Background and objectives Surgery for Crohn disease has a wide range of factors that are being studied as possible risk factors for postoperative complications. The later are a major problem in those patients and are associated with longer hospital stays and increased mortality and morbidity. Despite the debate regarding the influence of patients’ characteristics, preoperative and operative details, the risk factors are not fully identified. The debate has been focused on the new medical therapy and the time of surgery. Our goal was to help identify and confirm risk factors for postoperative complications.

Materials and methods A retrospective cohort study including all patients operated due to Crohn disease in São João Hospital Center from 2010 to 2015. We analyzed patient, preoperative and surgical characteristics. For postoperative complications data only those occurring within 30 days were included.

Results Neither age at diagnosis or previous corticotherapy/anti-TNF/ustekinumab was significantly associated with an increased risk in postoperative complications. Only age at surgery >40 years (Montreal Classification A1 + A2 vs. A3; OR = 4.12; p < 0.05) and the group others (occlusion vs. others [combination of intestinal perforation, mesenteric ischemia and postoperative complications] vs. fistula/abscess as indication for surgery; OR = 4.12; p < 0.05) remained as independent risk factors after multivariable regression analysis.

Conclusions We described clear associations between age at surgery >40 years and the group others (intestinal perforation, mesenteric ischemia and postoperative complications) and overall postoperative complications in Crohn disease. These results may suggest that surgery does not need to be delayed and, in some cases, should be anticipated.

Predictors of early recurrence after strictureplasty for Crohn's disease of the small bowel during the years of biologics

BACKGROUND

The identification of patients prone to early recurrence of Crohn's disease at the site of a strictureplasty is fundamental in the clinical practice.

AIMS

Aim of the study is to detect the risk factors for early reoperation for recurrence after primary strictureplasty.

METHODS

From 2000, patients undergoing a primary strictureplasty and a subsequent reoperation for recurrence of Crohn's disease at the site of a strictureplasty were included. Univariate and multivariable linear regression models were performed to analyse the relationship between the time to recurrence and independent variables.

RESULTS

Fifty-nine patients were included. Median time to recurrence was 4.5 years (0.7-12.6). At the multivariate linear regression, early relapse was significantly associated with use of biologics before primary surgery (-2.69, p < 0.0001) and location of disease in the ileum (-1.61, p 0.017). The use of biologics after surgery was similar between groups (40.7 vs 37.5%, p 0.79).

CONCLUSIONS

The location of Crohn's disease in the ileum and the use of biologics before surgery are strong predictors of early site-specific recurrence after strictureplasty. In this group of patients, a tailored follow-up and aggressive postoperative treatment should be considered.

Long-Term Outcomes After Primary Bowel Resection in Pediatric-Onset Crohn's Disease

BACKGROUND

There is limited evidence on the long-term outcome of intestinal resection in pediatric-onset Crohn's disease (POCD) with no established predictors of adverse outcomes. We aimed to investigate clinical outcomes and predictors for adverse outcome following intestinal resection in POCD.

METHODS

The medical records of patients with POCD who underwent at least 1 intestinal resection between 1990 and 2014 were reviewed retrospectively. Main outcome measures included time to first flare, hospitalization, second intestinal resection, and response to nonprophylactic biologic therapy.

RESULTS

Overall, 121 patients were included. Median follow-up was 6 years (range 1-23.6). One hundred and seven (88%) patients experienced at least 1 postsurgical exacerbation, 52 (43%) were hospitalized, and 17 (14%) underwent second intestinal resection. Of 91 patients who underwent surgery after the year 2000, 37 (41%) were treated with antitumor necrosis factor ɑ (anti-TNFɑ) (nonprophylactic) following intestinal resection. Time to hospitalization and to second intestinal resection were shorter among patients with extraintestinal manifestations (EIMs) (HR 2.7, P = 0.006 and HR = 3.1, P = 0.03, respectively). Time to initiation of biologic treatment was shorter in patients with granulomas (HR 2.1, P = 0.038), whereas being naïve to anti-TNFɑ treatment before surgery was a protective factor for biologic treatment following surgery (HR 0.3, P = 0.005). Undergoing intestinal resection beyond the year 2000 was associated with shorter time to first flare (HR 1.9, P = 0.019) and hospitalization (HR 2.6, P = 0.028).

CONCLUSION

Long-term risk for flares, hospitalization, or biologic treatment is significant in POCD following bowel resection. EIMs increase the risk for hospitalization and second intestinal resection.

Pharmacological- and non-pharmacological therapeutic approaches in inflammatory bowel disease in adults

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are a group of chronic inflammatory conditions mainly of the colon and small intestine. Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) are the most frequent types of IBD. IBD is a complex disease which arises as a result of the interaction of environmental, genetic and immunological factors. It is increasingly thought that alterations of immunological reactions of the patients to their own enterable bacteria (microfilm) may contribute to inflammation. It is characterized by mucosal and sub mucosal inflammation, perpetuated by infiltration of activated leukocytes. CD may affect the whole gastrointestinal tract while UC only attacks the large intestine. The therapeutic goal is to achieve a steroid-free long lasting remission in both entities. UC has the possibility to be cured by a total colectomy, while CD never can be cured by any operation. A lifelong intake of drugs is mostly necessary and essential. Medical treatment of IBD has to be individualized to each patient and usually starts with anti-inflammatory drugs. The choice what kind of drugs and what route administered (oral, rectal, intravenous) depends on factors including the type, the localization, and severity of the patient's disease. IBD may require immune-suppression to control symptoms such as prednisolone, thiopurines, calcineurin or sometimes folic acid inhibitors or biologics like TNF-α inhibitors or anti-integrin antibodies. For both types of disease (CD, UC) the same drugs are available but they differ in their preference in efficacy between CD and UC as 5-aminosalicylic acid for UC or budesonide for ileocecal CD. As therapeutic alternative the main mediators of the disease, namely the activated pro-inflammatory cytokine producing leukocytes can be selectively removed via two apheresis systems (Adacolumn and Cellsorba) in steroid-refractory or dependent cases. Extracorporeal photopheresis results in an increase of regulatory B cells, regulatory CD8(+) T cells and T-regs Type 1. Both types of apheresis were able to induce clinical remission and mucosal healing accompanied by tapering of steroids.

Preclinical and Undiagnosed Crohn's Disease: The Submerged Iceberg

Little is known on the natural history of Crohn's disease (CD) before diagnosis. By the time the patient is diagnosed, the disease has often produced considerable damage to the intestinal mucosa and sometimes other organs. Such period before diagnosis might involve both a silent and a symptomatic phase. The silent phase, or preclinical CD, might last several years after the biological disease onset. Evidence is accumulating that the symptomatic phase might also go undiagnosed for months or years. In fact, for each established case of CD, there are probably several undiagnosed cases, a classic iceberg phenomenon of disease. Such status quo--lagging behind diagnostic standards for many other diseases--effectively hampers efforts to block disease evolution and the development of complications. This is no longer tenable because CD is a debilitating, severe, and costly affection, whose incidence is rapidly rising worldwide. Here, we will review what is currently known on preclinical and undiagnosed CD and what could be done to improve accuracy and timeliness of diagnosis.

Primary Care of the Patient with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Inflammatory bowel disease involves 2 major disorders, ulcerative colitis and Crohn disease, both of which are due to inflammatory dysregulation in the gastrointestinal tract. Although these disorders have many overlapping features in pathophysiology and management, our current understanding of inflammatory bowel disease has illuminated several distinguishing features of the 2 diseases. This article highlights similarities and differences most applicable to a primary care physician's practice. Also detailed are disease-related and treatment-related complications, and routine health maintenance practices for the patient with inflammatory bowel disease.

Surgery in the age of biological treatment

Surgery for IBD is in constant evolution; it does not appear that the introduction of biologicals has had a major effect on the chance of a patient being operated on or not. Pouch surgery had its heydays in the 80s and 90s and has since then become less frequent, but the number of patients undergoing surgery still seem about the same from one year to the other. Likewise, there is no substantial evidence that surgery for Crohn's disease is diminishing. There have been fears that patients on biological treatment have an increased risk of postoperative complications. The issue is not completely settled but it is likely that patients on biological treatment who come to surgery are those who do not benefit from biologicals. Thus, they are compromised in that they have an ongoing inflammation, are in bad nutritional state, and might have several other known risk factors for a complicated postoperative course. These factors and perhaps not the biologicals per se is what surgeons should consider. During the recent years, we have seen several new developments in IBD surgery; the ileorectal anastomosis is being used for ulcerative colitis and laparoscopic surgery usually resulting in a shorter hospital stay, less pain, and better cosmetics. We have also seen the introduction of robotic surgery, single incision minimal invasive surgery, transanal minimal invasive surgery, and other approaches to minimize surgical trauma. Time will show which of these innovations patients will benefit from.