title: Cardiac involvement in inflammatory bowel disease: role of acylcarnitine esters.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Cardiovascular complications have been frequently described in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). Both Crohn disease and Ulcerative Colitis are characterized by malabsorption of some micronutrients, such as carnitine, which is a very important element for myocardial metabolism, being demonstrated that its deficiency correlates with heart involvement in coeliac disease. Aims of this study are to evaluate cardiac function in IBD patients asymptomatic for cardiovascular diseases and to correlate the cardiac data with the profile of carnitine esters plasma levels.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study was carried out on 20 IBD patients by comparison with 18 sex- and age-matched clinically healthy controls. Personal and familial history, physical examination, standard electrocardiogram and echocardiogram were performed in all subjects. Complete panel of nutritional status parameters and serum levels of free carnitine and its esters were evaluated both in IBD patients and control subjects.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Isovaleryl-carnitine, Tiglyl-carnitine, Octenoylcarnitine and Decanoyl-carnitine, were found to be significantly lower in IBD patients. Significant correlations were found between some carnitine esters and echocardiographic parameters although total and free carnitine were meanly more elevated in IBD. No statistically significant differences in echocardiographic parameters were found between IBD patients and control subjects.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Deficiency of some isoforms of carnitine, especially those esterified with short chain fatty acids, may play an important role in cardiac involvement in course of IBD and could lead, over time, to dilated cardiomiopathy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy. chiara.danese@uniroma1.it
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Danese
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cirene
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Colotto
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Aratari
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Amato
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Di Bona
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Curione
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002311:Cardiomyopathy, Dilated / Q000097:blood / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology*; D002331:Carnitine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood / Q000172:deficiency / Q000502:physiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications*; D008286:Malabsorption Syndromes / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism*; D014463:Ultrasonography; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: C116917:acylcarnitine; C104275:tiglylcarnitine; C002893:decanoylcarnitine; C027333:3-methylbutyrylcarnitine; D002331:Carnitine