Altered plasma concentrations of trace elements in ulcerative colitis patients before and after surgery

Ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) is a classical surgery for ulcerative colitis patients. However, knowledge on trace element alteration in patients who had undergone this surgery is limited. This study was conducted to assess trace element alteration in patients with ulcerative colitis before and after ileal pouch-anal anastomosis. Preoperative (40) and postoperative (35) ulcerative colitis patients were studied. The dietary assessment of trace element intake was undertaken by a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. Patients' trace element status of zinc, copper, manganese, selenium, calcium, iron, and vitamin D3 was assessed by measuring their blood concentrations. We found that with the similar dietary intake, there was no statistical difference in the concentrations of plasma copper, iron, calcium, and vitamin D3 in the two groups (P > 0.05). Compared with preoperative patients, postoperative patients had higher concentrations of plasma zinc (14.51 ± 4.75 μmol/l) and manganese (0.21 ± 0.11 μmol/l) and lower concentrations of plasma selenium (0.86 ± 0.58 μmol/l). Both preoperative and postoperative mean concentrations of plasma calcium and vitamin D3 were below their reference range, respectively. We conclude that IPAA does not seem to alter patients' abnormal trace elements completely. It is important to monitor and supply some specified trace elements even in postoperative patients.