Novel Insights into the Diagnosis and Management of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)

A special issue of Journal of Clinical Medicine (ISSN 2077-0383). This special issue belongs to the section "Gastroenterology & Hepatopancreatobiliary Medicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2025 | Viewed by 646

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Internal Medicine, 4th Medical Clinic, Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 400012 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Interests: inflammatory bowel disease; pancreatic disorders; EUS; digestive endoscopy; colorectal polyps

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are currently confronting an increasing incidence of chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The key features of IBD comprise a combination of clinical, biochemical, radiographic, endoscopic and pathological findings. Therefore, the therapeutic management of IBD is associated with multiple objectives: rapid clinical remission, a long-term outcome, mucosal healing, deep remission, steroid-free remission, a decreased risk of complications, cancer, hospitalization and surgery, and an eventual improvement in quality of life.

In recent decades, significant advances have been made in genetic, molecular and biochemical profiling for the diagnosis and monitoring of IBD. The treat-to-target strategy has been implemented in clinical practice to enable a broad range of available treatments to optimize patient outcomes. Moreover, new drugs are in development. Despite the availability of treatments, various aspects of IBD remain to be addressed. For example, many patients do not achieve remission, and ongoing symptoms may affect patients’ quality of life and lead to an increased risk of infection.

The prediction of outcomes and patients’ response to therapy is of paramount importance in decisions regarding treatment strategies. Therefore, the prognostic factors associated with the behavior of the disease, the risk of intestinal or extraintestinal complications, the risk of cancer or surgery, and the rate of response in different therapeutic molecules are still under investigation.

We are pleased to invite you to contribute your expertise and research to this Special Issue.

This Special Issue aims to address research and perspectives regarding the latest technologies for the diagnosis and treatment of IBD. Original articles and reviews that present monitoring strategies for the prediction of outcomes and the tailoring of therapy for IBD will be included. Articles that address the concept of the brain-gut axis in IBD are also welcome, as this Special Issue aims to investigate the correlation between chronic inflammation, dysbiosis and the risk of neurological disorders in IBD. Furthermore, this Special Issue aims to investigate the efficacy of novel therapeutic drugs and the outcomes of subsequent medical interventions in patients with a loss of response to anti-tumor necrosis factor agents.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following: non-invasive biomarkers for the early diagnosis of IBD and the prediction of its behavior, the genetic or molecular biomarkers associated with prognosis and drug response, the role of abdominal ultrasounds in monitoring and tailoring therapy, the management of dysplasia and colorectal cancer in IBD, the levels of anti-TNF drug and antibodies in monitoring IBD, the gut-brain axis and dysbiosis in IBD, the risk and diagnosis of neurological disorders in IBD, and nutrition and probiotics in IBD.

I look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Alina Ioana Tantau
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • inflammatory bowel disease
  • non-invasive biomarkers
  • abdominal ultrasonography
  • colonoscopy
  • biologic therapy
  • small molecules
  • mucosal healing
  • brain-gut axis
  • dysbiosis
  • colorectal dysplasia

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

15 pages, 1062 KiB  
Article
Brain-Gut Interplay: Cognitive Performance and Biomarker Correlations in IBD Patients
by Oliviu-Florențiu Sârb, Maria Iacobescu, Andreea-Maria Soporan, Ximena-Maria Mureșan, Adriana-Daniela Sârb, Raluca Stănciulescu, Corneliu-Daniel Leucuța and Alina-Ioana Tanțău
J. Clin. Med. 2025, 14(7), 2293; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14072293 - 27 Mar 2025
Viewed by 393
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), including mainly ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD), have been associated with cognitive and psychological changes, though the mechanisms remain unclear. Methods: This prospective case-control study aimed to evaluate cognitive performance and biomarkers (homocysteine, serum amyloid [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), including mainly ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD), have been associated with cognitive and psychological changes, though the mechanisms remain unclear. Methods: This prospective case-control study aimed to evaluate cognitive performance and biomarkers (homocysteine, serum amyloid A, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, and S100B protein) in IBD patients. Results: A total of 90 individuals (34 UC, 21 CD, and 35 controls) were assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), the Memory Impairment Index (MIS), and biomarker analysis. MoCA and MIS testing showed significant differences between UC, CD, and the controls, with lower scores observed in IBD groups (p = 0.003, p = 0.015). Regarding trail-making tests, digit symbol substitution tests, and forward and backward digit spans, no significant changes were observed. No functional deficits were observed in daily activities. Biomarker analysis revealed lower brain-derived neurotrophic factor and higher serum amyloid A levels in IBD patients, correlated to MOCA and MIS scores. There were no significant differences in psychological distress between IBD patients and the controls. Subtle cognitive declines were noted across all groups during the 1-year follow-up, without any statistical significance when groups were compared. Conclusions: In conclusion, IBD patients reported lower cognitive scores compared to the controls, while no differences in depression and anxiety scores were observed. Higher BDNF levels correlated with better cognitive functioning, while higher serum amyloid A correlated with lower cognitive functioning. Full article
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