Utilidad de la ecografía en la valoración de la extensión de la colitis ulcerosa Usefulness of digestive ultrasonography in assessment of ulcerative colitis extent

Introducción: el hallazgo de lesiones endoscópicas severas en un paciente con colitis ulcerosa desaconseja la realización de una exploración completa del colon. No obstante el conocimiento de la extensión precisa de la enfermedad tiene gran importancia en las decisiones terapéuticas a tomar y también en el pronóstico de la enfermedad. Por todo ello, la validación de una técnica no invasiva para el estudio de extensión de la colitis ulcerosa cobra gran interés e importancia. Material y método: se incluyen en el estudio pacientes con diagnóstico previo de colitis ulcerosa o en el debut de la enfermedad y, de forma prospectiva y ciega se evalúa la precisión de la ecografía digestiva en la valoración de la extensión de la colitis ulcerosa. Las exploraciones ecográficas son realizadas todas ellas por el mismo explorador y siempre con anterioridad al estudio endoscópico completo, que se usa como patrón oro. No se emplea la técnica hidrocolónica en ningún caso. Resultados: han sido incluidos en el estudio 20 pacientes, 13 varones (65%) y 7 mujeres (35%), con una edad media de 51,7 años (rango de 24 a 82 años). Los estudios endoscópicos mostraron una afectación severa en 5 casos (25%), moderada en 12 pacientes (60%) y lesiones leves en los 3 casos restantes (15%). El estudio ecográfico del colon fue considerado satisfactorio en 18 casos (90%) y la extensión de la enfermedad establecida en el estudio ecográfico coincide en todos los casos con la determinada por la colonoscopia: 3 pacientes (16,6%) presentaban una proctitis ulcerosa, 9 (50%) una colitis izquierda y 6 (33,3%) una colitis extensa. Conclusiones: la ecografía digestiva permite el estudio del marco colónico en la mayoría de los pacientes, especialmente si existe actividad inflamatoria, permitiendo establecer con gran precisión la extensión de la colitis ulcerosa, independientemente del grado de actividad de la misma.<br>Introduction: a full examination of the colon should be avoided upon finding severe endoscopic lesions in patients with ulcerative colitis. However, knowledge of the precise extent of disease is quite important for disease prognosis and the making of therapeutic decisions. Therefore, any validation of a non-invasive technique to assess the extent of ulcerative colitis gains a lot of interest and importance. Material and method: the study included patients that were previously diagnosed of having ulcerative colitis or were beginning to suffer from the disease. A prospective and blind evaluation was carried out to determine the precision of digestive ultrasonography in assessment of ulcerative colitis extent. All ultrasonography was carried out by the same person and was always performed prior to carrying out a full endoscopic study, which is used as the gold standard. The hydrocolonic ultrasonograpy technique was not used in any of the cases. Results: a total of 20 patients -13 males (65%) and 7 females (35%), with an average age of 51.7 years (aged between 24-82 years)- were included in the study. Endoscopic studies revealed severe disease in 5 cases (25%), moderate disease in 12 patients (60%), and mild lesions in the 3 remaining cases (15%). A colonic ultrasonogram was considered satisfactory in 18 cases (90%), and the extent of disease as established by ultrasonography was in all cases consistent with that established through colonoscopy: 3 patients (16.6%) had ulcerative proctitis, 9 patients (50%) had left-sided ulcerative colitis, and 6 (33.3%) had extensive colitis. Conclusions: digestive ultrasonography allows to study the colon in most patients, especially when inflammatory activity is present, and provides a greater accuracy in assessing ulcerative colitis extent, which is independent of its activity level

Tuberculosis in Anti-Tumour Necrosis Factor-treated Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patients After the Implementation of Preventive Measures: Compliance With Recommendations and Safety of Retreatment.

Despite having adopted preventive measures, tuberculosis (TB) may still occur in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) treated with anti-tumour necrosis factor (anti-TNF). Data on the causes and characteristics of TB cases in this scenario are lacking. Our aim was to describe the characteristics of TB in anti-TNF-treated IBD patients after the publication of the Spanish TB prevention guidelines in IBD patients and to evaluate the safety of restarting anti-TNF after a TB diagnosis. In this multicentre, retrospective, descriptive study, TB cases from Spanish hospitals were collected. Continuous variables were reported as mean and standard deviation or median and interquartile range. Categorical variables were described as absolute and relative frequencies and their confidence intervals when necessary. We collected 50 TB cases in anti-TNF-treated IBD patients, 60% male, median age 37.3 years (interquartile range [IQR] 30.4-47). Median latency between anti-TNF initiation and first TB symptoms was 155.5 days (IQR 88-301); 34% of TB cases were disseminated and 26% extrapulmonary. In 30 patients (60%), TB cases developed despite compliance with recommended preventive measures; *not performing 2-step TST (tuberculin skin test) was the main failure in compliance with recommendations. In 17 patients (34%) anti-TNF was restarted after a median of 13 months (IQR 7.1-17.3) and there were no cases of TB reactivation. Tuberculosis could still occur in anti-TNF-treated IBD patients despite compliance with recommended preventive measures. A significant number of cases developed when these recommendations were not followed. Restarting anti-TNF treatment in these patients seems to be safe