Mean platelet volume could be a promising biomarker to monitor dietary compliance in celiac disease

Background. Celiac disease (CD) is an autoimmune disease that develops in patients with a genetic predisposition, incurring a susceptibility to gluten-containing foods such as barley, wheat, and rye. The elimination of gluten from the diet is the main therapeutic approach and usually leads to clinical and laboratory improvement. There are no ideal markers that objectively assess dietary compliance in CD patients. Materials and methods. Sixty newly diagnosed CD patients (male/female: 43/17) and 40 healthy subjects (male/female: 23/17) were enrolled in this study. The diagnosis of CD was established by both histological findings of duodenum biopsy (total villous atrophy and lymphocytic infiltration) and positive antibodies against endomysium or gliadin. Results. A significantly higher mean platelet volume (MPV) was observed in the CD group compared with healthy subjects (8.45 +/- 0.96 fL versus 7.93 +/- 0.63 fL; p = 0.004). After introduction of a gluten-free diet, the MPV of CD patients in the dietary adherent group was significantly lower than that of the non-adherent group (8.09 +/- 0.6 fL versus 8.9 +/- 1.08 fL; p = 0.001). Overall dietary adherence rate was 71.6% (43/60 CD patients). In the dietary compliant group, initiation of gluten-free diet was associated with a significant decrease in MPV from base-line values (8.56 fL versus 8.25 fL; p = 0.008). In the non-adherent group, MPV on 3-month follow-up was higher than at base-line (8.05 fL versus 8.91 fL; p = 0.001). Conclusion. MPV could be a promising and easily available biomarker for monitoring of dietary adherence in CD patients at a low cost in comparison with other modalities.WoSScopu

The Role Of Fecal Calprotectin In Evaluating Intestinal Involvement Of Behçet'S Disease

One of the regions of involvement of Behçet's disease (BD), a systematic inflammatory vasculitis with unknown etiology, is the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Upper GI endoscopy, colonoscopy, and capsule endoscopy are frequently used methods to diagnose the intestinal involvement of BD. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of fecal calprotectin (FC) in the evaluation of intestinal involvement in BD. Material and Method. A total of 30 patients who were diagnosed with BD and had no GI symptoms and 25 individuals in the control group were included in this study. Results. Levels of FC were statistically significantly higher in patients with BD compared to the control group (p < 0.001). The correlation analysis performed including FC and markers of disease activity revealed a positive and statistically significant correlation between FC level and CRP and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (r: 0.255, p < 0.049, and r: 0.404, p < 0.001, resp.). FC levels in patients who were detected to have ulcers in the terminal ileum and colon in the colonoscopic examination were statistically significantly higher compared to the patients with BD without intestinal involvement (p = 0.01). Conclusion. The measurement of FC levels, in patients with BD who are asymptomatic for GI involvement, may be helpful to detect the possible underlying intestinal involvement.PubMedWoSScopu