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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Ultrasound Int Open 2022; 08(01): E22-E28
DOI: 10.1055/a-1781-4410
Original Article

Transabdominal Ultrasound and Magnetic Resonance Enterography in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Results of an Observational Retrospective Single-Center Study

Lenika Calavrezos
1   Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
,
Peter Bannas
2   Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf Center for Diagnostics, Hamburg, Germany
,
Malte Warncke
2   Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf Center for Diagnostics, Hamburg, Germany
,
Christiane Wiegard
1   Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
,
Samuel Huber
1   Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
,
Carolin Manthey
1   Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
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Abstract

Purpose Transabdominal ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance enterography (MRE) are used to assess disease activity and extent in IBD, but their impact on therapeutic decisions is unclear. Therefore, our study has two goals: to compare the usefulness of US and MRE in assessing disease extent and activity in the small and large bowel, and to determine the relevance for clinical decisions in IBD.

Materials and Methods We included 54 IBD patients who had undergone both MRE and US within three months. We used the construct reference standard model to compare MRE and US for detecting inflammation and examined the impact on clinical decisions in IBD patients.

Results In 54 IBD patients (44 patients Crohn’s disease (CD), 5 ulcerative colitis (UC), 5 indeterminate colitis (IC)), 42 patients (77.8%) showed inflammation either in the small or large bowel. Small bowel disease was present in 34 patients (77.3%). Complications were found in 19 patients (35.2%). MRE and US both showed high sensitivity (90.5 and 88.1%) and moderate specificity (50% in MRE and US) for detecting inflammation. MRE revealed higher sensitivity than US for detecting conglomerate tumors without statistical significance (85.7 vs. 71.4%, p=1.0) and equal specificity (97.9 vs 97.7, p=1.0). Therapeutic decisions included steroids in 20 patients (47.6%) and surgery/percutaneous drainage in six patients (14.3%), these decisions were triggered by results of US or MRE in equal distribution.

Conclusion US and MRE have comparable sensitivity and specificity for detecting intestinal inflammation and complications in IBD patients. Therefore, both methods are sufficient for making clinical decisions.

Key words

abdomen, AREAS - STRUCTURES & SYSTEMS - fistula, THEMES - abscess - inflammation - MR imaging

Supplementary Material



Publication History

Received: 15 September 2021

Accepted after revision: 30 January 2022

Article published online:
26 September 2022

© 2022. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

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