Biomarkers in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases

Ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD) are chronic relapsing inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). At the time of diagnosis it is not possible to predict the course of the disease, which can range from a few flares in a lifetime to uncontrollable disease leading to hospitalization, surgery and stoma. There is a continuous need to improve diagnostic and prognostic tools. In chronic inflammation diseases there is an excessive turnover of the extracellular tissue. Tissue is broken down to small fragments and released into the circulation. Changes in the amount of these fragments in the blood may provide information on the damage and quality of the affected tissue and may therefore act as objective measure of disease burden and severity - a so called biomarker. The potential of such biomarkers is evaluated in a combined cross-sectional and longitudinal survey including 300 patients with UC, CD, irritable bowel disease and healthy controls. The patients are followed for up to 1 year. Changes in biomarker are correlated to standard markers of inflammation during active disease and remission. Perspective The use of new biomarkers may offer a tool to evaluate early changes in the gut of patients with IBD, may be a supplement to the diagnosis, serve as markers for effect of treatment and prognosis, and in time be a good alternative to fecal samples or endoscopy.