2023-11-13 23:15:00
Key PointsPatients diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) show signs of the disorder years before developing symptoms. Changes in the intestine can be detected in blood tests up to eight years before a diagnosis of Crohn’s disease and up to three years before a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis. These tests might be used to predict IBD and potentially prevent its development.
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MONDAY, Nov. 13, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Inflammatory bowel disease begins to develop years before patients develop symptoms, a new study suggests. Changes in the intestine can be detected in blood tests up to eight years earlier of a diagnosis of Crohn’s disease and up to three years before a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis, according to findings recently published in the journal Cell Reports Medicine. This might give doctors the opportunity to take preventive measures before symptoms or prescribe medications when they will be most effective, the researchers said. “Our research shows that the intestinal damage we are seeing at the time of diagnosis is just the tip of the iceberg. Many changes are occurring subtly in the body before the disease takes hold.” , researcher James Lee said in a news release from the Francis Crick Institute. Lee is group leader at its Laboratory of Genetic Mechanisms of Disease in London. “This has huge implications for prevention, as it highlights that there is a window of opportunity for treatment,” he added. “We don’t yet know if preventative measures like changing diet or quitting smoking would prevent someone from getting these diseases, but this opens the door to that possibility.” Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis involve excessive inflammation in the intestine, which leading to symptoms such as abdominal pain and diarrhea. “These incurable diseases affect young individuals and are twice as common as type 1 diabetes. Understanding the exact mechanisms behind their development is essential to ultimately preventing these diseases from occurring,” Tine said. Jess, director of the Center for the Molecular Prediction of Inflammatory Bowel Disease at Aalborg University in Denmark. For this study, researchers evaluated the electronic health records of patients in Denmark, comparing 20,000 people with IBD once morest 4.6 million without IBD. . They looked at 10 years of test results leading up to the patients’ IBD diagnosis, to see if they had any early changes in common. They discovered changes in certain minerals, blood cells and inflammatory markers that occurred in IBD patients years before they developed symptoms and were diagnosed. Most of the changes seen were subtle and would have appeared within a normal range for standard blood tests, the researchers said. They would not have been flagged as a cause for concern by doctors. The researchers will next investigate whether these findings might be used to predict who will get IBD, as well as whether treatment and prevention might help people avoid or minimize an impending case of IBD. “Many young people are affected by IBD. Their lives, hopes and aspirations for the future are disrupted by a diagnosis and trying to live with a chronic disease,” said lead researcher Marie Vestergaard, a doctoral student at Aalborg University. “As a young person, this affects me,” he added. “I’m glad our research can help predict who might potentially have IBD and start treatment sooner, which would greatly improve their quality of life.” More information The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more information regarding inflammatory bowel disease. SOURCE: Francis Crick Institute, press release, November 7, 2023.
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