Ischemia-modified albumin: a novel blood marker of endoscopic mucosal healing in inflammatory bowel disease

Intest Res. 2024 Jan;22(1):75-81. doi: 10.5217/ir.2023.00065. Epub 2023 Nov 1.

Abstract

Background/aims: The achievement of endoscopic remission is an important therapeutic goal in the treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). We aimed to evaluate the role of fecal calprotectin (FCP) and ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) as biomarkers for evaluating IBD disease activity.

Methods: A total of 48 patients with IBD (20 with ulcerative colitis and 28 with Crohn's disease) were included in this study. FCP and serum C-reactive protein levels, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and IMA were measured in patients with IBD and compared with endoscopic findings.

Results: Elevated FCP and serum IMA levels were significantly associated with endoscopic non-mucosal healing. The correlation between FCP and IMA was not significant. Analysis of the receiver operating characteristic curve showed that both FCP and IMA had diagnostic value in predicting non-mucosal healing. When the Ln(FCP)+IMA/10 value was calculated using both factors, the predictive value for non-mucosal healing increased; however, no significant difference was observed.

Conclusions: IMA could be a candidate serum biomarker for predicting endoscopic mucosal healing in IBD.

Keywords: Biomarkers; Endoscopy; Inflammatory bowel diseases.