Significance of serrated epithelial change in inflammatory bowel disease

The clinical significance of hyperplastic polyp-like histologic changes in random biopsy samples ('serrated epithelial change' or SEC) from patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) remains uncertain, with some studies suggesting an increased risk of dysplasia and even carcinoma. Controlled studies are few. We studied the significance of SEC on the development of dysplasia in follow-up surveillance of IBD patients in our system.

We identified 94 IBD patients with SEC and 187 IBD patients without SEC identified in index biopsy samples, and retrospectively collated results of follow-up surveillance samples in each group, with the development of dysplasia and/or adenocarcinoma as study endpoints.

IBD patients with SEC had a 12.8% likelihood of developing dysplasia of any type within IBD-affected areas vs a 4.3% likelihood in non-SEC patients (follow-up in the 1-4 year range for each group). This was significant in univariate analysis (p = 0.013) but not in multivariate analysis, likely due to increased frequency of follow-up sampling in the SEC patients. One cancer developed in each group (p = NS).

Our data, in the context of other studies, neither prove nor conclusively exclude an increased risk of dysplasia in IBD patients with SEC. But cancer risk appears low and continued surveillance at usual intervals seems reasonable.