title: The use of fecal calprotectin as a biomarker in gastrointestinal disease.
abstract: Abdominal discomfort including pain, bloating and diarrhea is common. It often arises from functional gastrointestinal disorders but may indicate inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Calprotectin is an abundant neutrophil protein that is released during inflammation. When measured in feces, it can be used to differentiate between non-organic and inflammatory intestinal disorders, especially to identify IBD. Fecal calprotectin might also be useful to monitor patients with IBD under treatment and to predict the risk of recurrence of active disease prior to clinical relapse. The use of fecal calprotectin has been investigated in a number of gastrointestinal disorders other than IBD, for example, as screening test for colorectal cancer but the available data are limited. This article summarizes the current literature on the use of fecal calprotectin in clinical practice.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University Hospital Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Emanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Burri
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Beglinger
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000378:metabolism; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer / Q000379:methods; D005243:Feces / Q000737:chemistry*; D005767:Gastrointestinal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D039841:Leukocyte L1 Antigen Complex / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D039841:Leukocyte L1 Antigen Complex