Transabdominal ultrasound of the intestine in the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel diseases: a modern view

Abstract

Ultrasound of the intestine is a highly informative, accessible, harmless, mobile, common method of diagnosing inflammatory bowel diseases that does not require special training, has high specificity (95.6%) and sensitivity (89.7%) (depend on the examined area). In recent years, standardized methods have been developed to quantify the results of intestinal ultrasound in inflammatory bowel diseases, the most common of which are the Milan ultrasound criteria for ulcerative colitis, as well as the Sonographic Lesion Index for Crohn’s disease (SLIC), the International Bowel Ultrasound Segmental Activity Score (IBUS-SAS), A simple Ultrasound Activity Score for Crohn’s Disease (SUS-CD) with a satisfactory correlation and an area under the curve. The use of echocontrast drugs (both oral - polyethylene glycol and intravenous - Sonovue) improves the visualization of a number of structures. Purpose: consider the current position of ultrasound for the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel diseases, research technique, specificity and sensitivity of the method, quantitative methods of evaluating indicators, applicability for monitoring the activity of the disease, the presence of complications and the effectiveness of therapy. Materials and methods: in February-June 2023, articles were searched in the databases PubMed, Cyberleninka, Wiley, Oxford University Press, Science Direct with the following keywords: inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), ultrasound, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, disease activity, ultrasonographic parameters, index, abdominal ultrasonography, sonovue, gastrointestinal Ultrasound (GIUS), Contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS), epidemiology. Practical guidelines on ultrasound diagnostics, clinical recommendations on Crohn’s disease [regional enteritis] and ulcerative colitis, guidelines of international medical associations, communities, etc. were also used. The search was not limited to years or languages. After reviewing the abstracts of articles or full texts, a decision was made on the suitability of the articles for inclusion in the review. The graphs, diagrams, figures of interest were used as a source for creating own illustrations. Conclusion: ultrasound methods of intestinal examination have a number of advantages, which include high information content, no need for preparation, high availability, prevalence, low cost and harmlessness. Of particular clinical importance is the possibility of evaluation at the patient’s bedside, the use of ultrasound criteria for assessing the activity of IBD and monitoring in dynamics.