Volume 19, Issue 2

I am delighted to share some exciting updates regarding our e-Learning platform. As we embrace the vibrant seasons of spring and summer, I encourage you to take advantage of the latest content we have recently added to the e-Library, including the latest Abstracts and Presentations from the ECCO’24 Congress. I am pleased to announce the introduction of new and updated content on our e-Learning platform:

Two new members joined the N-ECCO Committee in February 2024: Maria de Jong from the Netherlands and Cathy Walsh from Ireland. We all share the same mission: promoting IBD nursing in Europe, rolling out educational and research programmes, and developing patient care and education. We are looking forward to working together, and here Maria and Cathy introduce themselves and their aims while on the committee...

Diet in Inflammatory Bowel Disease has become a hot topic in recent years, pushed forward by advances in our understanding of the microbiome and the promise of nutrition as therapy, particularly in Crohn’s Disease. One of the most important questions in clinic (and yet the hardest to answer) remains “What can I eat?” or variations of the same. The reason this question is so difficult to answer is the enormous complexity in how diet overlays IBD and also the lack of high-quality scientific studies addressing this specific problem...

Caroline Nordenvall has recently joined the S-ECCO Committee. She works at the Karolinska University Hospital as an IBD surgeon and is head of the research group in colorectal surgery. She is an Associate Professor within the University. Caroline is the PI of the CRUISE study (Colectomy and Reconstruction in Ulcerative colitis In Sweden and England study), a multicentre study in collaboration with three Swedish centres and St Marks Hospital (England). This is a clinical preference study that has the aim of comparing QoL and functional outcome following restorative surgery with ileal pouch ...

The last decade has seen a dramatic increase in drugs available for the treatment of IBD. However, each of these novel biologics or small molecules achieves disease remission in only a relatively small proportion of patients [1].To date, implementation in clinical practice of evidence that assists in better evaluating the chance of therapy success in a particular patient for a particular drug is limited. Therefore, when choosing a drug for a patient with IBD who is starting therapy or needs to switch drugs, a trial-and-error approach may be unavoidable.

The gut microbiota of patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) may have a role in disease aetiology and course [1]. Patients with IBD often have dysbiotic microbiota, with lower microbial diversity and cell counts, with both absolute and relative abundance of commensal microorganisms [2, 3]. Conversely, during remission following anti-inflammatory therapy, the gut microbiota has been observed to shift to a more eubiosis-like composition [3–6]. Furthermore, lower proportions of taxa with pro-inflammatory properties and mucus-degrading bacteria, as well as higher proportions of short-chain