Gallstones and Risk of Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis , collectively known as inflammatory bowel diseases , have increased substantially over the past few decades affecting nearly 6.8 million individuals worldwide. The etiology of IBD remains obscure, possibly involving a complex interaction between the genetic, environmental or microbial factors and the immune responses. Gallstone disease is one of the most common and costly gastroenterological disorders, with a prevalence of 10-20% in Europe and America. Considering that gallstones and IBD also share specific risk factors, such as obesity, inappropriate diet and metabolic hormone levels, and have the pathophysiologic linkage, such as changes in gut microbiota composition and bile acid profile, the investigators propose that the occurrence of gallstones may predict the subsequence risk of IBD. However, investigations concerning the association is lacking.

Inclusion criteria

• Age between 18 and 90 years old
• IBD established by standard criteria, either Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis

Exclusion criteria

• Pregnant or nursing woman;
• Prior abdominal surgery related to IBD, such as subtotal or total colectomy;
• HIV infection or any congenital immunodeficiency at the time of inclusion;
• Post organ transplant patients;
• Patients suffering from cancer currently or in the past;
• Patients suffering from significant cardiovascular disease;
• Patients suffering from significant respiratory diseases;
• Patients suffering from any other chronic severe diseases.