Mattila Juho, Kallio Johanna, Löyttyniemi Eliisa, Nuutila Pirjo, Koffert Jukka
Department of Gastroenterology, Turku University Hospital, P.O. Box 52, Turku, 20521, Finland.
Department of Radiology, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland.
Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2025 Aug 26. doi: 10.1007/s00259-025-07524-4.
Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic and relapsing inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract. Diagnostics and follow-up are difficult in small bowel, that can be only partially evaluated by conventional endoscopy. Combined positron emission tomography magnetic resonance enterography (PET-MRE) has shown potential in diagnosing small bowel CD, but its role in monitoring treatment response has not been previously established. This study aimed to evaluate whether PET-MRE can be used to assess the efficacy of medical therapy. We hypothesized that standardized uptake values (SUV) in inflamed small bowel segments would decrease following initiation of standard therapy. A total of 35 volunteer patients with clinically suspected small bowel CD were recruited. All patients underwent ileocolonoscopy and laboratory testing, followed by [F]-FDG PET-MRE. CD diagnosis was confirmed by small bowel capsule endoscopy. Clinicians initiated treatment based on standard diagnostics, blinded to the PET results. Eighteen patients completed follow-up [F]-FDG PET-MRE at three months. Maximum SUV (SUV) was measured in the small intestine and compared with MRE findings. The median SUV decreased significantly from baseline to follow-up (3.2 vs. 2.1, p = 0.0025). The Simplified Magnetic Resonance Index of Activity (sMARIA) was also significantly lower at follow-up (p = 0.001). Representatively, median fecal calprotectin declined (451 µg/g vs. 163 µg/g, p = 0.004). This preliminary prospective study suggests that [F]-FDG PET-MRE may be a useful tool for assessing biochemical response to treatment in newly diagnosed small bowel CD.Trial registration number: NCT06796959 (ClinicalTrials.gov). Retrospectively registered on 21.1.2025. Enrollment of first participant on 1.8.2020.
Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2025-8-26
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