Catheter probe assisted endoluminal US in inflammatory bowel disease.
BACKGROUND
Use of an echocolonoscope to examine patients with inflammatory bowel disease is technically difficult. Catheter probe assisted endoluminal ultrasonography (US) may be a feasible alternative.


METHODS
Determination of demographic information and clinical disease activity was followed by colonoscopy with biopsy. Catheter probe assisted endoluminal US was performed with measurements of thickness of the intestinal wall and evaluation of the structure of the sonographic layers.


RESULTS
Twenty-eight patients, 7 with ulcerative colitis, 11 with Crohn's disease, and 10 healthy control subjects participated in a prospective study. Mean colonic wall thickness was 2.2 +/- 0.1 mm (controls) compared with 4. 1 +/- 0.4 mm (ulcerative colitis) (p < 0.001) and 4.4 +/- 0.4 mm (Crohn's disease) (p < 0.001). Among patients with ulcerative colitis, colonic wall thickness correlated with severity of colonoscopic changes (r = 0.84, p = 0.02). Among patients with Crohn's disease, loss of endosonographic layer structure correlated with disease activity score (r = 0.8, p = 0.003), and colonic wall thickness correlated with the severity of histologic changes (r = 0. 62, p = 0.04).


CONCLUSIONS
Catheter probe assisted endoluminal US is technically feasible in the care of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Endosonographic measurements of colonic wall thickness and layer structure provide clinically significant information.
Soweid
A M
AM
Divisions of Gastroenterology, University Hospitals of Cleveland, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio 44106-1736, USA.
Chak
A
A
Katz
J A
JA
Sivak
M V
MV
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002404:Catheterization / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003106:Colon / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D003113:Colonoscopy; D019160:Endosonography / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies