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Crohn's Disease (CD) can affect any part of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, including the upper GI tract (UGIT). However, the definitions and classifications of upper GI CD (UGICD) vary. We conducted a scoping review to explore how UGIT and UGICD are defined and to assess the heterogeneity of these definitions in published CD guidelines, aiming to inform future initiatives for harmonizing definitions. We conducted a search of MEDLINE and Embase for English-language guidelines on CD that mentioned upper GI-related terms in the titles, abstracts, or keywords from inception until 26 July 2024. Definitions of UGIT and UGICD were summarized descriptively. Of 1132 citations, only 19 records met our inclusion criteria. Only eight were identified as CD guidelines. None of them focuses on UGICD. Among these, five diagnostic guidelines explicitly mentioned "upper GI" in their abstracts. Only the joint European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation and European Society of Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiology guidelines clearly defined the UGIT. Most guidelines mentioned UGI terms related to upper endoscopy or biopsy only. It was unclear whether these guidelines typically included the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum in the definition of UGICD while excluding the distal small intestine. Although the latest guideline related to pediatric-onset IBD cited the 2011 Paris classification, none of the three guidelines published after that explicitly mentioned the proposed subdivided location of the upper disease. There is a lack of consistent reporting in defining UGICD according to disease location. It is unclear whether there is a consensus on excluding the small intestine beyond the duodenum. Additionally, there is no indication that the subdivided location of UGIT was considered in CD guideline development. Greater consistency in definitions would aid in diagnosis, clinical care, epidemiological research and inclusion into clinical trials. These findings underscore the need for developing a framework to standardize the classification of UGICD, especially for clinical trials., (© 2024 The Author(s). United European Gastroenterology Journal published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of United European Gastroenterology.)

Background: The performance of bowel preparation (BP) in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) is unknown., Aims: To evaluate the operating properties of instruments used to assess BP quality in patients with CD., Methods: We used the Boston Bowel Preparation Scale, modified Boston Bowel Preparation Scale, Harefield Cleansing Scale, Food and Drug Administration Bowel Cleansing Assessment Scale (BCAS), and a 100-mm visual analogue scale of bowel cleanliness to assess BP quality in 50 videos from 40 patients with CD. We assessed endoscopic activity with the Simple Endoscopic Score for CD (SES-CD). Assessments were on endoscope insertion and withdrawal. Reliability was quantified using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). We assessed validity by within-patient correlation between instruments and the visual analogue scale using mixed-effect models. The correlation between BP quality and SES-SD scores was assessed using Spearman's rho., Results: Inter- and intra-rater reliability for all BP quality instruments was substantial (ICC ≥0.61) except for the Food and Drug Administration BCAS on insertion (inter-rater reliability ICC ≥0.41). The visual analogue scale had substantial inter- and almost perfect (ICC ≥0.81) intra-rater reliability. Correlation coefficients for the validity of the instruments exceeded 0.58. BP quality and endoscopic disease activity scores in the colon were negatively correlated., Conclusion: Most existing instruments reliably assess BP quality in patients with CD. These results support the use of these instruments in clinical practice, provide a framework for scoring BP quality in CD clinical trials, and support evaluation of novel BP agents in patients with CD., (© 2024 The Author(s). Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Background: Stricturing, penetrating complications and extraintestinal manifestations (EIMs) are frequent in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). There is limited data on the prevalence of these complications in patients with IBD. Therefore, we aimed to assess the burden of these complications detected incidentally on cross-sectional imaging., Methods: A retrospective study conducted at two tertiary care centers in London, Ontario. Patients (≥18 years) with a confirmed diagnosis of IBD who underwent CT enterography (CTE) or MR enterography (MRE) between 1 Jan 2010 and 31 Dec 2018 were included. Categorical variables were reported as proportions and the mean and standard deviations were reported for continuous variables., Results: A total of 615 imaging tests (MRE: 67.3% [414/615]) were performed in 557 IBD patients (CD: 91.4% [509/557], UC: 8.6% [48/557]). 38.2% (213/557) of patients were male, with mean age of 45.6 years (±15.8), and median disease duration of 11.0 years (±12.5). Among patients with CD, 33.2% (169/509) had strictures, with 7.8% having two or more strictures and 66.3% considered inflammatory. A fistula was reported in 10.6% (54/509), the most common being perianal fistula (27.8% [15/54]), followed by enterocutaneous fistula (16.8% [9/54]), and enteroenteric fistula (16.8% [9/54]). Additionally, 7.4% (41/557) of patients with IBD were found to have an EIM on cross-sectional imaging, with the most prevalent EIM being cholelithiasis (63.4% [26/41]), followed by sacroiliitis (24.4% [10/41]), primary sclerosing cholangitis (4.8% [2/41]) and nephrolithiasis (4.8% [2/41])., Conclusions: Approximately 40% of patients with CD undergoing cross-sectional imaging had evidence of a stricture or fistulizing disease, with 7% of patients with IBD having a detectable EIM. These results highlight the burden of disease and the need for specific therapies for these disease phenotypes., (© 2024 The Author(s). United European Gastroenterology Journal published by Wiley Periodicals LLC. on behalf of United European Gastroenterology.)

Background: Crohn's disease (CD) is characterized by discontinuous inflammation. Failure to identify skipping lesions of the terminal ileum (TI) or transmural changes can lead to incorrect management., Methods: Eligible adult patients with CD undergoing ileo-colonoscopy and computed tomography enterography or magnetic resonance enterography within 6 months. We determined the prevalence of endoscopic skipping (normal ileum on colonoscopy but proximal small bowel inflammation on cross-sectional imaging), skip lesions (discontinuous inflammation along the gastrointestinal tract identified on cross-sectional imaging), structuring, and penetrating complications., Results: Among 202 patients, 45 (22.3%) had endoscopic skipping proximal to TI intubation. Fifty patients (24.5%) had small bowel skip lesions, primarily in the ileum. Strictures were identified in 34 patients (16.8%) through both imaging and ileo-colonoscopy, in 21 patients (10.4%) solely through cross-sectional imaging, and in 3 patients (1.5%) solely through ileo-colonoscopy. Approximately 36.2% of stricturing cases would be missed without cross-sectional imaging. Penetrating complications, including abscesses (2.5%) and various fistula types (4.9%), were detected in 15 (7.4%) patients., Conclusions: Ileo-colonoscopy missed detection of active CD in approximately one-fifth of cases due to more proximal disease location. Stricturing disease might be missed in more than a third of cases if cross-sectional imaging is not performed., (© 2024 Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation.)

Introduction: Symptoms, endoscopy and histology have been proposed as therapeutic targets in ulcerative colitis (UC). Observational studies suggest that the achievement of histologic remission may be associated with a lower risk of complications, compared with the achievement of endoscopic remission alone. The actiVE ulcerative colitis, a RanDomIsed Controlled Trial (VERDICT) aims to determine the optimal treatment target in patients with UC., Methods and Analysis: In this multicentre, prospective randomised study, 660 patients with moderate to severe UC (Mayo rectal bleeding subscore [RBS] ≥1; Mayo endoscopic score [MES] ≥2) are randomly assigned to three treatment targets: corticosteroid-free symptomatic remission (Mayo RBS=0) (group 1); corticosteroid-free endoscopic remission (MES ≤1) and symptomatic remission (group 2); or corticosteroid-free histologic remission (Geboes score <2B.0), endoscopic remission and symptomatic remission (group 3). Treatment is escalated using vedolizumab according to a treatment algorithm that is dependent on the patient's baseline UC therapy until the target is achieved at weeks 16, 32 or 48. The primary outcome, the time from target achievement to a UC-related complication, will be compared between groups 1 and 3 using a Cox proportional hazards model., Ethics and Dissemination: The study was approved by ethics committees at the country level or at individual sites as per individual country requirements. A full list of ethics committees is available on request. Study results will be disseminated in peer-reviewed journals and at scientific meetings., Trial Registration Number: EudraCT: 2019-002485-12; NCT04259138., Competing Interests: Competing interests: VJ has received consulting/advisory board fees from AbbVie, Alimentiv Inc (formerly Robarts Clinical Trials), Arena Pharmaceuticals, Asieris, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celltrion, Eli Lilly, Ferring, Fresenius Kabi, Galapagos, GlaxoSmithKline, Genentech, Gilead, Janssen, Merck, Mylan, Pandion, Pendopharm, Pfizer, Reistone Biopharma, Roche, Sandoz, Takeda and Topivert; and speaker’s fees from Abbvie, Ferring, Janssen, Pfizer, Shire and Takeda. GZ has received consulting fees from Alimentiv Inc. ZW is an employee of Alimentiv Inc. SA is an employee of Takeda Pharmaceuticals. JFC reports receiving research grants from AbbVie, Janssen Pharmaceuticals and Takeda; payment for lectures from AbbVie, Amgen, Allergan. Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Shire and Takeda; consulting fees from AbbVie, Amgen, Arena Pharmaceuticals, Boehringer Ingelheim, BMS, Celgene Corporation, Eli Lilly, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Galmed Research, Genentech, Glaxo Smith Kline, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Kaleido Biosciences, Imedex, Immunic, Iterative Scopes, Merck, Microbia, Novartis, PBM Capital, Pfizer, Protagonist Therapeutics, Sanofi, Takeda, TiGenix, Vifor; and holds stock options in Intestinal Biotech Development. GRD has served as a consultant and/or received speaker fees from Abbvie, Alimentiv, AstraZeneca, Biora (Progenity), Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celltrion Healthcare, Cytoki Pharma, Eli Lilly, Ferring, Galapagos, GlaxoSmithKline, Gossamer Bio, Immunic, InDex Pharmaceuticals, Janssen, Johnson & Johnson, Kaleido, Pfizer, Prometheus Biosciences, Prometheus Laboratories, Protagonist Therapeutics, Takeda, Tillotts and Ventyx Biosciences. MF is an employee of Takeda Pharmaceuticals. GWM is a consultant for Alimentiv and in receipt of research funding from AstraZeneca and Johnson and Johnson. LPB has received personal fees from AbbVie, Adacyte, Alimentiv, Alma Bio Therapeutics, Amgen, Applied Molecular Transport, Arena, Biogen, BMS, Celltrion, CONNECT Biopharm, Cytoki Pharma, Enthera, Ferring, Fresenius Kabi, Galapagos, Genentech, Gilead, Gossamer Bio, GSK, HAC-Pharma, IAG Image Analysis, Index Pharmaceuticals, Inotrem, Janssen, Lilly, Medac, Mopac, Morphic, MSD, Norgine, Nordic Pharma, Novartis, OM Pharma, ONO Pharma, OSE Immunotherapeutics, Pandion Therapeutics, Par’Immune, Pfizer, Prometheus, Protagonist, Roche, Sanofi, Sandoz, Takeda, Theravance, Thermo Fisher, Tigenix, Tillots, Viatris, Vifor, Ysopia, Abivax, Samsung, Ventyx, Roivant and Vectivbio. WJS reports receiving consulting fees from Abbvie, Abivax, Alfasigma, Alimentiv, Beigene, Biora (Progenity), Celltrion, Forbion, Genentech, Gossamer Biosciences, Index Pharmaceuticals, Prometheus Biosciences, Protagonist Therapeutics, Shoreline Biosciences, Vedanta Biosciences, Ventyx Biosciences, Zealand Pharma; and stock or stock options from BeiGene, Gossamer Bio, Biora (Progenity), Prometheus Biosciences, Prometheus Laboratories, Shoreline Biosciences, Ventyx Biosciences, Vimalan Biosciences, Vivreon Gastrosciences; he is an employee at Shoreline Biosciences and Ventyx Biosciences. Spouse: Iveric Bio—consultant, stock options; Biora (Progenity)—stock; Prometheus Biosciences—employee, stock, stock options; Prometheus Laboratories—stock, stock options; Ventyx Biosciences—stock, stock options; Vimalan Biosciences—stock, stock options. SS reports research grants from Takeda, Pfizer, Tillotts Pharma, Abbvie and Biogen; and personal fees for speaker role and advisory board meetings from Janssen, Amgen, Tillotts Pharma, Abbvie, Takeda, Celgene, Roche, Pharmacosmos, and Falk Pharma outside the submitted work. ST has received grants/research support from AbbVie, Buhlmann, Celgene, ECCO, Helmsley Trust, IOIBD, Janssen, Lilly, Pfizer, Takeda, UCB, UKIERI, Vifor and Norman Collisson Foundation; consulting fees from Abacus, AbbVie, Actial, ai4gi, Alcimed, Allergan, Amgen, Apexian, Aptel, Arena, Asahi, Aspen, Astellas, Atlantic, AstraZeneca, Barco, Biocare, Biogen, BLPharma, Boehringer Ingelheim, BMS, Buhlmann, Calcico, Celgene, Cellerix, Cerimon, ChemoCentryx, Chiesi, CisBio, ComCast, Coronado, Cosmo, Ducentis, Dynavax, Elan, Enterome, EQrX, Equillium, Falk, Ferring, FPRT Bio, Galapagos, Genentech/Roche, Genzyme, Gilead, Glenmark, Grunenthal, GSK, GW Pharmaceuticals, Immunocore, Immunometabolism, Indigo, Janssen, Lexicon, Lilly, Medarex, Medtrix, Merck, Merrimack, Mestag, Millenium, Neovacs, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, NPS-Nycomed, Ocera, Optima, Origin, Otsuka, Palau, Pentax, Pfizer, Pharmaventure, Phesi, Phillips, P&G, Pronota, Protagonist, Proximagen, Resolute, Robarts, Sandoz, Sanofi, Santarus, Satisfai, Sensyne Health, Shire, SigmoidPharma, Sorriso, Souffinez, Syndermix, Synthon, Takeda, Theravance, Tigenix, Tillotts, Topivert, Trino Therapeutics with Wellcome Trust, TxCell, UCB Pharma, Vertex, VHsquared, Vifor, Warner Chilcott and Zeria; speaker fees from AbbVie, Amgen, Biogen, BMS, Falk, Ferring, Janssen, Lilly, Pfizer, Shire, Takeda and UCB. He has no stocks or share options. SV has received grants from AbbVie, J&J, Pfizer, Takeda and Galapagos; consulting and/or speaking fees from AbbVie, AbolerIS Pharma, AgomAb, Alimentiv, Arena Pharmaceuticals, AstraZeneca, Avaxia, BMS, Boehringer Ingelheim, Celgene, CVasThera, Cytoki Pharma, Dr Falk Pharma, Ferring, Galapagos, Genentech-Roche, Gilead, GSK, Hospira, Imidomics, Janssen, J&J, Lilly, Materia Prima, MiroBio, Morphic, MrMHealth, Mundipharma, MSD, Pentax, Pfizer, Prodigest, Progenity, Prometheus, Robarts Clinical Trials, Second Genome, Shire, Surrozen, Takeda, Theravance, Tillots Pharma AG and Zealand Pharma. GR is an employee of Alimentiv Inc. JS is an employee of Alimentiv Inc. JH has received consulting fees from Alimentiv Inc.; and speaker’s fees from Abbvie, Janssen and Takeda. CM has received consulting fees from AbbVie, Alimentiv, Amgen, AVIR Pharma, Bristol Myers Squibb, Ferring, Fresenius Kabi, Janssen, McKesson, Mylan, Takeda, Pfizer and Roche; speaker's fees from AbbVie, Amgen, AVIR Pharma, Alimentiv, Ferring, Janssen, Takeda and Pfizer; and research support from Pfizer. RS is an employee of Alimentiv Inc. SCM is an employee of Alimentiv Inc. NA reports no conflicts of interest. MB has received honoraria from Shire, Allergan, Pfizer, and Takeda; advisory board fees from AbbVie, Takeda, Janssen, Lupin, Gilead, Pfizer, and Novo Nordisk; clinical trials: AbbVie, Novo Nordisk, Gilead, Takeda, Boehringer Ingelheim, Janssen, Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Intercept; research publications: AbbVie (2021–letter signed). PB reports receiving research grants from Abbvie, Amgen, Celltrion, Mylan, Pfizer and Takeda; lecture fees from AbbVie, Celltrion, Janssen, Lilly, and Takeda; and consulting fees Abbvie, Arena Pharmaceuticals, BMS, Celltrion, Dr Falk, Galapagos, Janssen, Lilly, Pentax, PSI-CRO, Roche, Takeda, and Tetrameros. DG has received advisory board fees from Takeda, Abbvie, Janssen, Pfizer, Merck, and Freseni Kabi. WH reports no conflicts of interest. MH reports no conflicts of interest. MK has received personal fees from Shire, a Takeda company, during the conduct of the study; personal fees and non-financial support from Takeda; personal fees and non-financial support from Janssen; personal fees and non-financial support from Ferring, outside the submitted work. RP has received consulting/advisory board fees from AbbVie, Janssen, Pfizer and Allergan. MSS has received consulting, speaker and advisory board fees from Abbvie, Janssen, Pfizer, and Takeda. LW reports no conflicts of interest. BGF is a scientific advisory board member for AbbVie, Allergan, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Avaxia Biologics, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Celgene, Elan, Biogen, Ferring, Genentech–Roche, Janssen–Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Millennium, Nestlé, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Pfizer, Prometheus, Protagonist, Receptos, Salix, Sigmoid Pharma, Takeda, Teva, TiGenix, Tillotts Pharma and UCB Pharma; consulting fees from AbbVie, Actogenix, Akros, Albireo Pharma, Allergan, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Avaxia Biologics, Avir Pharma, Axcan, Baxter Healthcare, Biogen Idec, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Calypso Biotech, Celgene, Elan–Biogen, EnGene, Ferring, Genentech–Roche, GiCare Pharma, Gilead Sciences, Given Imaging, GlaxoSmithKline, Ironwood, Janssen Biotech–Centocor, Janssen–Johnson & Johnson, Kyowa Hakko Kirin, Eli Lilly, Merck, Mesoblast Pharma, Millennium, Nestlé, Novo Nordisk, Novartis, Pfizer, Prometheus, Protagonist, Receptos Salix, Sanofi, Shire, Sigmoid Pharma, Synergy Pharma, Takeda, Teva, TiGenix, Tillotts Pharma, UCB Pharma, Vertex, VHsquared, Wyeth, Zealand and Zygenia; lecture fees from AbbVie, Janssen–Johnson & Johnson, Takeda, and UCB Pharma, and grant support from AbbVie, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Janssen Biotech–Centocor, Janssen–Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, Receptos, Sanofi, and Takeda and is the Senior Scientific Officer of Alimentiv Inc. Alimentiv Inc is an academic gastrointestinal contract research organisation (CRO), operating under the Alimentiv Health Trust. Alimentiv Inc. provides comprehensive clinical trial services, precision medicine offerings, and centralised imaging solutions for endoscopy, histopathology and other imaging modalities. The beneficiaries of the Alimentiv Health Trust are the employees of the enterprises it holds. BGF, GRD, GZ, VJ and WJS are consultants to Alimentiv Inc. and have a primary academic appointment; they do not hold equity positions or shares in Alimentiv Inc., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)