Objective:To analyze the characteristics of transabdominal bowel ultrasound (TBUS) in immune checkpoint inhibitor-related colitis (IRC) and their correlation with endoscopic manifestations.Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted. Clinical data from 10 patients with IRC treated at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from January 2022 to January 2024 were collected. The ulcerative colitis endoscopic index of severity (UCEIS) and Limberg classification were used to assess the severity of colonoscopy and TBUS examinations, respectively. Kendall's tau-b method was applied for correlation analysis between UCEIS scores and Limberg classification.Results:All the 10 patients were male with a median age of 65 years (59-74 years). The majority had lung cancer (8 patients) and all were in advanced stages, with 6 patients in stage Ⅲ and 4 in stage Ⅳ. They all received anti-programmed death 1 (PD-1) /anti-programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) combined with chemotherapy, among whom 2 patients were combined with anti-angiogenic drug treatment. The median time from the first immunotherapy to the onset of IRC was 1.50 (0.25-12.00) months; the median time from IRC treatment to clinical symptom relief to G1 was 2.45 (0.50-8.00) weeks. Nine patients were in the active phase, mainly G3 (8 patients) ; 1 was in the remission phase after treatment. TBUS showed that among the 9 active IRC patients, the entire colon was mainly involved (7 patients), with combined small intestine involvement (3 patients) ; the main manifestations were thickening of the bowel wall, with the thickest bowel wall being 7.0 (5.0-8.0) mm, mainly located in the sigmoid colon (3 patients) and descending colon (3 patients) ; increased bowel wall blood flow signals (Limberg classification 2-4) occurred in 7 patients; 3 active patients had perienteric fat wrapping, and 2 had blurred bowel wall stratification. The Kendall's tau-b correlation coefficient r between the entire colon UCEIS scores and Limberg classification was 0.891 ( P = 0.003), and the Kendall's tau-b correlation coefficient r between the colon segment UCEIS scores and Limberg classification was 0.690 ( P < 0.001) . Conclusion:During the active phase, the left colon of IRC is more severe in TBUS, which mainly manifests as the thickening bowel wall and increased blood flow signals, and the TBUS has good correlation with colonoscopy evaluation.

Objective:To summarize and analyze the clinical features of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) accompanied by axial spondyloarthritis (ax-SpA) .Methods:A descriptive case series study was conducted. Consecutive IBD patients with ax-SpA admitted to Peking Union Medical College Hospital from January 2012 to December 2023 were enrolled, and the clinical data were collected and analyzed descriptively.Results:A total of 21 IBD patients with ax-SpA were enrolled, including 14 males (66.7%) and 7 females (33.3%). The median age at IBD diagnosis was 29 (24, 42) years. Among them, 10 had ulcerative colitis (UC) and 11 had Crohn's disease (CD). In 11 patients (52.4%), ax-SpA was diagnosed before IBD, while in 7 patients (33.3%), IBD was diagnosed before ax-SpA; the remaining 3 patients (14.3%) were diagnosed simultaneously. Thirteen patients (61.9%) had other extraintestinal manifestations, with 12 involving mucocutaneous manifestations. Nineteen patients including 9 UC and 10 CD were followed up for a median duration of 34 (12, 57) months. Among UC patients, 5 (55.6%) were escalated from conventional therapy to biologics or small-molecule drugs, and 6 (66.7%) developed opportunistic infections. Among CD patients, 3 (30.0%) were escalated to biologic therapy, and 2 (20.0%) developed opportunistic infections. Three patients (15.8%) underwent intestinal resection surgery.Conclusions:IBD patients with ax-SpA are predominantly male, with a similar proportion of UC and CD. There is no clear sequential pattern in the diagnosis timing of IBD and ax-SpA. These patients often present with other extraintestinal manifestations of IBD, primarily mucocutaneous manifestations.

Objective:To evaluate the diagnostic performance of fecal calprotectin (FC) in predicting endoscopic activity of ulcerative colitis (UC), and to compare it with high-sensitivity C reactive protein (hsCRP) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) .Methods:A cross-sectional stydy was conducted. UC patients diagnosed at Peking Union Medical College Hospital between May 2023 and July 2025 were retrospective enrolled. Patients were divided into the endoscopically active group and endoscopic remission group according to endoscopic activity. FC levels were measured using latex-enhanced turbidimetric immunoassay (LETIA). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and logistic regression models were used to assess diagnostic efficacy. Subgroup analyses were conducted according to disease extent.Results:A total of 166 UC patients were enrolled, including 92 males and 74 females with the age of 40.00 (32.00, 52.00) years old and disease course 5.00 (2.00, 10.75) years. Forty-six patients were assigned to the active group, while the remaining 120 were assigned to the remission group. FC levels were significantly higher in the active group than in the remission group (620.72 μg/g vs. 29.00 μg/g, P < 0.001), with an AUC of 0.894 at a cutoff value of 122.54 μg/g. hsCRP and ESR had lower AUC (0.712 and 0.736, respectively). The combination of FC, hsCRP, and ESR slightly improved specificity (AUC 0.898). FC was strongly correlated with the endoscopic activity ( r =0.669, P < 0.001) but not with disease extent. Conclusions:FC measured by latex-enhanced turbidimetric immunoassay had comparable diagnostic accuracy to ELISA-based methods commonly used abroad, and provided a reference cutoff value of 122.54 μg/g. FC outperforms hsCRP and ESR in assessing intestinal inflammation in UC and it is less affected by disease extent, making it a reliable non-invasive biomarker for UC monitoring.

Objective:To evaluate the predictive efficacy of fecal calprotectin (FC) for endoscopic activity in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) .Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted and patients diagnosed as CD at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from June 2023 to September 2025 were enrolled consecutively. Data was collected including general information, laboratory tests [hemoglobin (HGB), platelet (PLT), FC, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and so on], and endoscopic results. FC levels were measured by latex-enhanced turbidimetric immunoassay (LETIA). Endoscopic activity was defined as the simplified endoscopic score for Crohn's disease (SES-CD) > 2. Patients were divided into the endoscopically active group and endoscopic remission group according to endoscopic activity, and the differences in clinical data between the two groups were compared. Spearman correlation analysis was used to assess the correlation between FC and endoscopic activity, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the predictive efficacy of FC, hsCRP and ESR for endoscopic activity, and the differences were compared.Results:A total of 90 CD patients were enrolled, including 65 males and 25 females with the age of 30 (22, 41) years old and disease course 4.0 (0.5, 8.0) years. Seventy-one patients (78.9%) had ileocolonic disease involvement (L3), and 55 patients (61.1%) were using biologics. Sixty-nine patients in endoscopic active phase were assigned to the endoscopically active group, while the remaining 21 were assigned to the endoscopic remission group. There were no statistically significant differences in general characteristics such as age and gender between the two groups (all P > 0.05). Compared with endoscopic remission group, HGB was significantly lower in the endoscopically active group, while PLT, hsCRP, ESR, and FC were moderataly higher (all P < 0.05). Among the 90 CD patients, FC levels were moderatly correlated with endoscopic activity (ρ = 0.494). ROC curve analysis indicated that the area under the curve for FC in predicting endoscopic activity was 0.836 (95% CI: 0.737-0.935), with a sensitivity of 0.725, specificity of 0.952, and accuracy of 0.778 at the optimal FC cutoff value of 153.8 μg/g. FC outperformed hsCRP and ESR. Conclusion:FC measured by LETIA demonstrates certain efficacy in predicting endoscopic activity in CD and will assist in efficient clinical monitoring of CD patients.

Chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction(CIPO)is a rare intestinal motility disorder character-ized by nonspecific clinical manifestations that mimic mechanical intestinal obstruction but lack corroborative evidence of mechanical obstruction,leading to frequent underdiagnosis and misdiagnosis in clinical practice.Based on etiology,CIPO is classified into primary and secondary subtypes,with diagnosis relying on compre-hensive evaluation integrating clinical presentation,imaging findings,gastrointestinal motility testing,and his-topathological analysis.Owing to its complex pathogenesis and significant interindividual variability,CIPO cur-rently lacks standardized diagnostic criteria and effective therapeutic strategies.Its management typically requires multidisciplinary collaboration,emphasizing patient education alongside integrated interventions including nutritional support,pharmacotherapy,endoscopic procedures,and surgeries when indicated.Recent advancements in gastrointestinal motility assessment and molecular biology techniques have facilitated improve-ments in CIPO diagnosis and treatment.This review summarizes current clinical advances in CIPO management to provide practical references for clinicians.

Rare digestive diseases refer to rare disorders that primarily affect the digestive system.Currently,there is no standardized clinical classification system for these conditions,and physicians have low awareness of them.This leads to a high likelihood of missed diagnoses and misdiagnoses during the di-agnostic and treatment process,coupled with a scarcity of specific and effective therapeutic options,ulti-mately imposing a tremendous disease burden on patients.With the publication of China's first and second batches of rare disease catalogs,many rare digestive diseases have been progressively included,thereby enhancing awareness among clinicians and patients.The role of gastroenterologists in the multidisciplinary treatment(MDT)of rare diseases is becoming increasingly prominent.The advancement in the disciplinary construction and clinical research of rare digestive diseases,the ongoing implementation of the MDT,and the establishment of multidisciplinary teams for rare digestive diseases collectively enhance the diagnostic and therapeutic capabilities for rare digestive diseases and lay a solid foundation for large-scale,high-quality clinical research.

Rare small intestinal diseases are characterized by a broad disease spectrum,non-specific clinical manifestations,and relatively limited diagnostic modalities,which significantly hinder early diagnosis and treatment.Meanwhile,the subspecialty development of rare digestive diseases lags behind,with insufficient physician awareness and a scarcity of experienced multidisciplinary collaborative teams,further exacerbating the difficulties in disease management.In recent years,advancements in gene testing technologies,along with con-tinuous refinements in imaging and endoscopic techniques,have substantially improved the diagnostic and ther-apeutic landscape for rare small intestinal diseases.This article outlines the difficulties and challenges in diag-nosing and treating these conditions,and reviews the evolving applications of common diagnostic and therapeutic approaches across various rare small intestinal diseases.

Objective To explore the methods of continuing education for advanced endoscope operations by diges-tive specialists through the establishment and teaching effect evaluation of the ERCP(endoscope retrograde cholan-giopancreatography)introductory training mode.Methods A total of 26 trainees from 3 sessions of the ERCP intro-ductory training courses at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from September 2023 to September 2024 were in-cluded.The teaching effects of the training courses and its 5 modules were subjectively and objectively evaluated by questionnaires,on-site tests and evaluations by senior ERCP operators.Results Through the ERCP introductory training courses,the trainees'self-evaluated proficiency in duodenoscope structure(pre-training:2.4±2.4,post-training:8.2±1.5,P＜0.001),duodenoscope operation(pre-training:1.2±2.2,post-training:6.6±1.8,P＜0.001),papillary cannulation(pre-training:0.5±1.3,post-training:5.4±1.8,P＜0.001),intra-bile duct operation(pre-training:0.2±0.6,post-training:4.9±2.1,P＜0.001),and identification of intra-bile duct lesions(pre-training:1.7±2.1,post-training:6.0±2.0,P＜0.001)was significantly improved.The accuracy rate of the trainees'theoretical tests and picture recognition before training was 37.2％and then increased up to 62.8％after training.Before training,all trainees were considered by senior operators as not ready to start ERCP training on real patients,while after training,69.2％(18/26)of the trainees were considered ready to start ERCP training on real patients.Conclusions The multi-module ERCP introductory training courses have a significant effect in terms of laying a foundation for trainees to start ERCP training on patients and of providing a reference for the con-tinuing education mode of advanced endoscope operations for digestive specialists in China.

Auto-brewery syndrome(ABS)is a rare and easily overlooked disease.Overgrowth of certain high-alcohol-producing fungi and bacteria in the intestine leads to the production of endogenous ethanol that ex-ceeds the liver's maximum metabolic capacity,resulting in an elevated ethanol concentration in the patient's peripheral blood.Even without alcohol intake,patients may exhibit symptoms similar to intoxication,causing various social,occupational,and health-related distress.This article provides an overview of the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of ABS,reveals that gut microbiota dysbiosis is the core of ABS,and introduces multiple intervention strategies involving the regulation of the gut microbiota,including dietary intervention,pharmaco-therapy,probiotic therapy,fecal microbiota transplantation,and phage therapy,with the aim of assisting clini-cians in the early identification and treatment of ABS.

The coexistence of inflammatory bowel disease(IBD)and autoimmune liver disease(AILD)has gained increasing attention in clinical practice,and there are significant increases in the prevalence rates of autoimmune hepatitis(AIH),primary sclerosing cholangitis(PSC),and AIH-PSC overlap syndrome among the patients with IBD.Several pathogenic mechanisms are shared between IBD and AILDs,including genetic susceptibility,dysregulation of the gut-liver axis,immune imbalance,and abnormal bile acid metabolism.The ECCO guidelines recommend that patients who are suspected of IBD and receive no treatment should undergo a series of liver function tests,including alanine aminotransferase,alkaline phosphatase,gamma-glutamyl transferase,and total serum bilirubin,as well as regular reexaminations during follow-up.While IBD-AILD patients have unique clinical features,there is still a lack of unified diagnosis and treatment guidelines for this comorbidity,and the selection of therapeutic goal often entails a careful balance between the intestinal tract and the liver,requiring interdisciplinary collaboration and combined therapies based on pathogenesis.Future research should focus on the dynamic regulatory networks of the gut-liver axis to develop innovative intervention strategies that ensure both efficacy and safety.