#FGBlog: Measuring disability in IBD, and its predictive value in treatment decisions

The importance of Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is now widely appreciated. Despite this, only relatively recently were PROMs routinely incorporated into clinical trials as outcomes. Current tools available include the IBD questionnaire (IBDQ) for measuring health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and IBD-control for measuring patients’ perspective of disease control. […]

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#FGBlog: Should senior trainees start teaching endoscopy?

  As trainees progress through their career, they are encouraged or even expected to train and supervise junior colleagues. Traditionally, this has been reserved for inpatient management, basic procedures such as vascular access, and more advanced procedures such as chest drains or central venous access. Whilst surgical training in the UK often pair a junior […]

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#FGBlog: Dedicated Barrett’s oesophagus surveillance lists: the future for better dysplasia detection?

Getting surveillance for Barrett’s oesophagus (BO) right is critical for early detection and prevention of oesophageal adenocarcinoma. When identified early, Barrett’s can be treated effectively with minimally invasive endoscopic techniques. Despite clear national guidelines on when and how to perform surveillance for BO, adherence to these guidelines is variable. In the most recent edition of […]

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#FGBlog: New colonoscopy training pathway and certification: will we rise to the challenge?

  Colonoscopy is the gold standard technique to assess the lower gastrointestinal tract, allowing direct visualisation of the bowel mucosa, targeted biopsy, and appropriate therapy including resection of precancerous lesions. Although the quality of colonoscopy has improved, there is a still wide variation in quality of colonoscopies performed in the United Kingdom (UK).1, 2 With […]

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A new approach to coeliac disease diagnosis?

It is well-established that UK endoscopy services are under pressure, with post-Covid waiting lists pushing demand to an all-time high.1 Whilst a no-biopsy approach has been advocated in the diagnosis of coeliac disease (CD) in children since 2012, British Society of Gastroenterology (BSG) guidelines issued in 2014 still advise four duodenal biopsies for the diagnosis […]

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#FGBlog :Disparity between current guidelines and prescribing in IBD: Is it a lack of awareness or lack of convincing evidence?

It is a well-known fact that the greatest limitation of large randomised controlled trial studies is their lack of external validity with specific patients being excluded from important studies due to their co-morbidities including surgical history (such as ileostomies), age (whether that be children or the elderly) and gender (with females being more likely to […]

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