Risk of cardiovascular disease in inflammatory bowel disease

Abundant scientific evidence supporting an association between inflammatory bowel disease(IBD) and venous thromboembolic events, caused by an IBD related hypercoagulability, is acknowledged and thromboprophylactic treatment strategies are now implemented in the management of IBD patients. In contrary, the risk of arterial thromboembolic disease, as ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular events, and mesenteric ischemia in patients with IBD remains uncertain and the magnitude of a potentially increased risk is continuously debated, with ambiguous risk estimates among studies. The evident role of inflammation in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis forms the basis of a biological plausible link; the chronic systemic inflammation in IBD patients increases the risk of atherosclerosis and thereby the risk of thrombotic events. Further, studies have shown that the burden of traditional risk factors for atherosclerosis, such as obesity, diabetes mellitus, and dyslipidemia is lower in IBD populations, thus further strengthen the role of non-traditional risk factors, as chronic inflammation in the linking of the two disease entities. Likewise, mortality from cardiovascular disease in IBD remains questioned. The aim of the current review is to give an up-date on the existing evidence of the possible association between IBD and cardiovascular disease and to discuss traditional and non-traditional risk factors.     

Epstein-Barr virus related lymphoma in inflammatory bowel disease

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) induced lymphoproliferative disease is a well-known, feared complication of EBV primo-infection in children treated with immunomodulators or immunosuppressive drugs, eg after transplantation. As the incidence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in young children is rising, more young EBV naive patients are treated with immunomodulatory agents. It is not yet clear whether these patients carry the same risk as transplanted patients to develop lymphoproliferative disease and if so, whether their evolution is comparable. We present the history of a young patient with Crohn's disease who developed an EBV related lymphoma shortly after the primo-infection while being treated with azathioprine. This case argues for a rigorous follow up of young IBD patients treated with immune suppressive drugs, also regarding EBV status.     

Risk factors for osteoporosis in inflammatory bowel disease patients

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients exhibit higher risk for bone loss than the general population. The chronic inflammation causes a reduction in bone mineral density (BMD), which leads to osteopenia and osteoporosis. This article reviewed each risk factor for osteoporosis in IBD patients. Inflammation is one of the factors that contribute to osteoporosis in IBD patients, and the main system that is involved in bone loss is likely RANK/RANKL/osteoprotegerin. Smoking is a risk factor for bone loss and fractures, and many mechanisms have been proposed to explain this loss. Body composition also interferes in bone metabolism and increasing muscle mass may positively affect BMD. IBD patients frequently use corticosteroids, which stimulates osteoclastogenesis. IBD patients are also associated with vitamin D deficiency, which contributes to bone loss. However, infliximab therapy is associated with improvements in bone metabolism, but it is not clear whether the effects are because of inflammation improvement or infliximab use. Ulcerative colitis patients with proctocolectomy and ileal pouches and Crohn’s disease patients with ostomy are also at risk for bone loss, and these patients should be closely monitored.     

Risk of cancer in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)

Patients with inflammmatory bowel disease (IBD) have been reported to have an increased risk of colorectal cancer. Yet, the quantitation of the risk varies widely from one study to the next. This is most likely due to biases in the assessment of cancer risk in IBD, namely, a relatively low prevalence of IBD-related cancer and the clinically heterogeneous nature of IBD in the population. Total proctocolectomy also changes the natural history of IBD-related cancer. Ulcerative colitis (UC)-related cancer is more probable in total and extensive colitis and occurs approximately a decade after diagnosis. Crohn's disease-related colorectal cancer is reported in many, but not all, studies, and the relative risk differs between hospital- and population-based studies. IBD-related cancer is relatively uncommon in childhood; however, this is also a subject of debate. There are no data on the incidence of IBD-related cancer in Europe as a whole; there are only separate studies. A reduced risk for UC-related cancer in patients treated with anti-inflammatory drugs has been reported. The two main strategies for preventing IBD-related cancer are prophylactic colectomy and colonoscopic surveillance. To date, there have virtually been no cost-effectiveness analyses and no studies regarding total disease outcome or patient's quality of life with either strategy. No controlled, prospective trials have been reported in the literature. UC patients with familiar predisposition for colorectal cancer and with concomitant primary sclerosing cholangitis are groups at high risk for IBD-related cancer. Cancer risk in IBD has to be reinvestigated and properly estimated with population-based studies in several areas with standard methods already described.     

Risk of haematopoietic cancer in patients with inflammatory bowel disease

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Several chronic inflammatory conditions are associated with an increased risk of lymphoma. Whether this applies to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is still unclear but of paramount interest, particularly in the safety evaluation of newer immunosuppressive drugs. Reports also indicate a possible increase in the risk of leukaemia in IBD. We therefore assessed the risk of haematopoietic cancers in a large cohort of patients with IBD.Subjects and METHODS: We performed a population based cohort study using prospectively recorded data, including 47 679 Swedish patients with Crohn's disease (CD) or ulcerative colitis (UC) assembled from regional cohorts of IBD from 1955 to 1990 (n = 8028) and from the Inpatient Register of 1964-2000 (n = 45 060), with follow up until 2001. Relative risks were expressed as standardised incidence ratios (SIR). RESULTS: Overall, we observed 264 haematopoietic cancers during follow up, which corresponded to a borderline significant 20% increased risk in both UC and CD. In UC, lymphomas occurred as expected (SIR 1.0, n = 87) but myeloid leukaemia occurred significantly more often than expected (SIR 1.8, n = 32). In CD, there was a borderline significant increased lymphoma risk (SIR 1.3, n = 65), essentially confined to the first years of follow up. Proxy markers of disease activity had little impact on lymphoma risk. CONCLUSION: On average, patients with IBD have a marginally increased risk of haematopoietic cancer. In UC, this is accounted for by an excess of myeloid leukaemia. In CD, a modest short term increase in the risk of lymphoma of unknown significance cannot be excluded but any long term risk increase seems unlikely.     

Primary effusion lymphoma-like lymphoma in a patient with inflammatory bowel disease

A 77-year-old man with inflammatory bowel disease(IBD)and who was treated with anti-tumor necrosis factor(TNF),6-mercaptopurine and corticosteroids,presented with primary effusion lymphoma-like lymphoma(PEL-like lymphoma)with massive ascites.The patient’s clinical course was complicated by acute renal insufficiency and hypotension,which led to death within 2 wk.In general,patients with IBD may have an increased risk for development of lymphoma,which is frequently associated with immunosuppressive and/or anti-TNF antibody therapies.PEL is a rare subset of lymphoma localized to serous body cavities,lacks tumor mass or nodal involvement,and is associated with infection by human herpes virus 8(HHV-8).Primary neoplastic effusion may also be present in patients with large B-cell lymphoma without evidence of human immunodeficiency virus or HHV-8 infections.This type of lymphoma is classified as PEL-like lymphoma.Both PEL and PEL-like lymphoma types have been reported in patients undergoing immunosuppressive therapy,but to the best of our knowledge,the case described herein represents the first PEL-like lymphoma occurring in a patient with IBD.     

Mantle zone lymphoma of the colon simulating diffuse inflammatory bowel disease

We describe the first reported case of mantle zone lymphoma of the colon presenting as diffuse ileocolitis simulating severe inflammatory bowel disease. This case serves to illustrate the importance of immunohistochemistry in establishing the diagnosis of lymphoma in extranodal sites.     

Risk of postoperative infection in patients with inflammatory bowel disease]

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The clinical course of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) frequently leads to the use of immunosuppressants and immunomodulators. We investigated the risk of postoperative infection in patients with IBD undergoing elective bowel surgery and whether the use of corticosteroid (CS) and/or 6-mercaptopurine/ azathioprine (6-MP/AZA) before surgery was associated with the increased risk of postoperative infection. METHODS: Patients who were diagnosed as Crohn's disease (n=25) or ulcerative colitis (n=19) and underwent elective bowel surgery between 1986 and 2005 were identified. Medical records were retrospectively analyzed including age, sex, duration of disease, indication for surgery, duration of surgery, type of surgery, type of postoperative infection, admission period, usage of CS and 6-MP/AZA, and preoperative laboratory values. There were 27 patients receiving CS alone, 6 patients receiving 6-MP/AZA alone or with CS, and 16 patients receiving neither CS nor 6-MP/AZA. RESULTS: There were 17 postoperative infections (38.6%) among IBD patients who had undergone surgery and wound infection was the most common type of infection (76.5%). In IBD patients, patients receiving CS had higher postoperative infection rate than those patients receiving neither CS nor 6-MP/AZA (p=0.039). Patients receiving CS in conjunction with 6-MP/AZA did not have significantly higher postoperative infection rate than those with CS only (p=0.415). CONCLUSIONS: Preoperative use of CS in patients with IBD is associated with the increased risk of postoperative infections. Addition of 6-MP/AZA in patients receiving CS does not increase the risk of postoperative infections.     

Risk of infections associated with biological treatment in inflammatory bowel disease

Tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)inhibitors are biological agents introduced in the late 1990s for the treatment of different immune-mediated diseases as inflammatory bowel disease,rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis.The most commonly used TNF-αantagonists are infliximab,adalimumab,and certolizumab pegol,and though highly effective in lowering inflammation,the efficacy must be weighed against the potential for adverse events.The treatment-induced immunosuppression is suspected to increase the risk of infections,including the risk of reactivation of latent tuberculosis,as the TNF-αcytokine plays an important role in the immune function.In this topic highlight a short overview of the infection risk associated with TNF-αinhibiter therapy is outlined with a focus on the overall risk of serious infections,mycobacterial infection and latent viral infections.     

Risk factors of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in patients with inflammatory bowel disease

BackgroundMetabolic risk factors are associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), but they are less frequent in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).AimThis study evaluates the frequency of NAFLD and its risk factors among IBD patients including anti-TNF-α therapy.MethodsIBD patients who underwent abdominal imaging from January, 2009 to December, 2010 were analyzed in this nested, case-controlled study. IBD patients with NAFLD by imaging were compared with those who had no evidence of NAFLD (control).ResultsAmong 928 IBD patients, 76 (8.2%) had evidence of NAFLD by imaging, and were compared to 141 patients without NAFLD evaluated (study: control ratio = ~ 1:2). NAFLD patients were older (46.0 ± 13.3 vs. 42.0 ± 14.1 years; p = 0.018) and had a later onset of IBD compared to the control group (37.2 ± 15.3 vs. 28.7 ± 23.8 years; p = 0.002). Metabolic syndrome was present in 29.0% of NAFLD patients, with a median Adult Treatment Panel risk factor of 2 [Interquartile range 1,3]. Patients not receiving anti-TNF-α therapy had a higher occurrence of NAFLD (p = 0.048). In multivariate analysis, hypertension (OR = 3.5), obesity (OR = 2.1), small bowel surgeries (OR = 3.7), and use of steroids at the time of imaging (OR = 3.7) were independent factors associated with NAFLD.ConclusionNAFLD occurred in 8.2% of the IBD population. NAFLD patients were older and had a later onset of IBD disease. IBD patients develop NAFLD with fewer metabolic risk factors than non-IBD NAFLD patients. It is also less common among patients who received anti-TNF-α therapy.     

Risk factors of suspected spondyloarthritis among inflammatory bowel disease patients

Abstract

Background: Occurring in approximately 20–30% of patients, spondyloarthritis is the most common extraintestinal manifestation in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Aims: To look for risk factors of spondyloarthritis among inflammatory bowel disease patients.

Methods: We modified the STRIPP questionnaire created for psoriatic patients and we created a rapid questionnaire for rheumatologic investigation in IBD patients (STRII). We submitted the questionnaire to all consecutive patients with a known spondyloarthritis in our centre and to patients with a negative rheumatological diagnosis to find the cut-off value. Finally, we prospectively submitted the STRII questionnaire to all consecutive IBD patients in our centre.

Results: A cut-off ≥3 correlated with spondyloarthritis with an AUC = 0.91. The STRII questionnaire was submitted to 1147 IBD patients. Two hundred and forty-four out of 1147 (21.3%) collected a STRII score of ≥3. Female sex (p?<?.0001) and Crohn’s disease (p?=?.023) were risk factors. Patients with a history of at least 1 immunosuppressant or biologic drug (p?=?.002 and p?<?.0001, respectively) had a higher rate of positivity to STRII questionnaire.

Conclusion: Among IBD patients, females, Crohn’s disease, those with a history of at least 1 immunosuppressive or biological therapy are at increased risk of spondyloarthritis.