Endoscopic scoring systems for the evaluation and monitoring of disease activity in Crohn's disease.

ABSTRACT

Crohn's disease is a chronic relapsing idiopathic condition that can affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract. It has been shown that mucosal healing is associated with improved clinical outcomes such as reduced risk of surgery, hospitalization and complications. Nowadays mucosal healing is considered the optimal target of medical therapy. To evaluate the mucosa in an objective and standardized manner, it is important to rely on accurate and validated endoscopic scores. The Crohn's disease endoscopic index of severity, the simple endoscopic score for Crohn's disease as well as the Rutgeerts score will be reviewed. Their clinical implications and limitations will be discussed.