RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Despite reductions in surgical rates that have been observed with earlier use of biological therapy, surgery still constitutes an important tool in the therapeutic armamentarium in Crohn's disease (CD), particularly in patients with stenotic and penetrating phenotypes. In these scenarios, early surgical intervention is recommended, as bowel damage is present and irreversible, leading to lower efficacy with biologics. SUMMARY: The concept of early surgery in CD supposes the possible advantages of better surgical outcomes in luminal CD after initial resection. Optimal timing of surgical intervention is associated with better postoperative outcomes, whilst delays can lead to more technically difficult and extensive procedures, which may result in an increase in postoperative complication rates and higher rates of stoma formation. Furthermore, data from the LIR!C trial have demonstrated that early surgery in luminal localized inflammatory ileocecal CD is an adequate alternative to medical therapy, with lower societal costs in the long term. In this review, we discuss the position of early resection in ileocecal CD by critically reviewing available data, describing the ideal patients to be considered for early surgery, and weighing the potential advantages and disadvantages of an early surgery paradigm. KEY MESSAGES: While early surgery may not be the right choice for every patient, the ultimate decision regarding whether surgical or medical therapy should come first in the treatment paradigm must be individualized for each patient based on the disease characteristics, phenotype, risk factors, and personal preference. This highlights the importance of the multidisciplinary team, which remains a key pillar in deciding the overall management plan for patients with CD.
RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Vedolizumab (VDZ) is a gut-specific α4-ß7 integrin antagonist that has demonstrated efficacy in Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). The safety of VDZ in the perioperative period remains unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate postoperative complications and perioperative safety in VDZ-treated patients undergoing nonintestinal operations. METHODS: A case-matched study was performed at two inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) referral centers. Adult patients with CD and UC who underwent a nonintestinal surgical procedure during treatment with VDZ were included. Patients who had their last VDZ infusion up to 12 weeks before the procedure were considered exposed and were matched in a 1:1 ratio to patients without VDZ therapy, according to type of surgical procedure, age, and sex. The primary outcome was overall risk of early postoperative infectious complications (up to 30 days after surgery), readmissions, reoperations, surgical site infections, and other infections. The VDZ and control groups were subsequently compared using the Pearson χ2 test and Wilcoxon rank sum. RESULTS: We identified 34 patients treated with VDZ who underwent 36 nonintestinal surgical procedures. These patients were matched with 36 control procedures. Postoperative complications were not different between the VDZ-treated and control cohorts for all outcomes analyzed: infectious complications occurred in 14% versus 8% (p = 0.45), superficial surgical site infections 6% versus 0% (p = 0.15), reoperations 6% versus 3% (p = 0.56) and readmissions 11% versus 6% (p = 0.37). CONCLUSIONS: VDZ-treated patients with IBD undergoing nonintestinal procedures did not have an increased risk of overall postoperative infections or other complications compared with matched controls.