Prospective postsurgical capsule endoscopy in patients with Crohn's disease

To clarify the usefulness of postsurgical capsule endoscopy (CE) in the diagnosis of recurrent small bowel lesions of Crohn's disease (CD).

This prospective study included 19 patients who underwent ileocolectomy or partial ileal resection for CD. CE was performed 2-3 wk after surgery to check for the presence/absence and severity of lesions remaining in the small bowel, and for any recurrence at the anastomosed area. CE was repeated 6-8 mo after surgery and the findings were compared with those obtained shortly after surgery. The Lewis score (LS) was used to evaluate any inflammatory changes of the small bowel.

One patient was excluded from analysis because of insufficient endoscopy data at the initial CE. The total LS shortly after surgery was 428.3 on average (median, 174; range, 8-4264), and was ≥ 135 (active stage) in 78% (14 of 18) of the patients. When the remaining unresected small bowel was divided into 3 equal portions according to the transition time (proximal, middle, and distal tertiles), the mean LS was 286.6, 83.0, and 146.7, respectively, without any significant difference. Ulcerous lesions in the anastomosed area were observed in 83% of all patients. In 38% of the 13 patients who could undergo CE again after 6-8 mo, the total LS was higher by ≥ 100 than that recorded shortly after surgery, thus indicating a diagnosis of endoscopic progressive recurrence.

Our pilot study suggests that CE can be used to objectively evaluate the postoperative recurrence of small bowel lesions after surgery for CD.