Radiological Follow-Up of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are chronic gastrointestinal diseases that typically affect the young working-age population. Patients with IBD, both asymptomatic and symptomatic, often develop complications during their clinical course. This is particularly true in patients with Crohn’s disease (CD) and biological signs of inflammation, despite being asymptomatic. In addition, it seems clear that the absence of symptoms does not imply an absence of inflammation. For all the above mentioned reasons, patients should be followed up and objectively evaluated. IBD are idiopathic diseases characterized by periods of remission and frequent exacerbations. To appreciate the impact of disease progression, it is necessary to understand the natural history of IBD. In CD patients, the cumulative relapse rate during the first 10 years of disease is reported to be 90% and the cumulative probability of surgery 38%.