title: Clinical significance of inflammatory markers.
abstract: Inflammatory markers play a key role in the evaluation of patients with gastrointestinal symptoms. For patients presenting with nonspecific symptoms of abdominal pain and diarrhea, distinguishing inflammatory bowel disease from other disorders can be difficult, and invasive diagnostic procedures may be required. Inflammatory markers can be useful to differentiate patients who may require further workup from those who do not. Several serum, fecal, and other markers are reviewed for their use in clinical practice. Although no single ideal marker exists, a few show promise in diagnosing inflammatory disease, monitoring disease activity, and predicting relapse.
authors.affiliation: Baylor College of Medicine, Suite 800, Houston, TX 77030, USA. bincya@bcm.edu
authors.forename: Bincy P
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Abraham
authors.forename: Selvi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Thirumurthi
mesh_terms: D019268:Antibodies, Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic / Q000032:analysis / Q000097:blood; D000908:Antibodies, Fungal / Q000097:blood; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D003093:Colitis, Ulcerative / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D007155:Immunologic Factors / Q000097:blood; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D019268:Antibodies, Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic; D000908:Antibodies, Fungal; D015415:Biomarkers; D007155:Immunologic Factors; D002097:C-Reactive Protein