| Interventions |
Patients admitted to hospital with a flare of ulcerative colitis will be monitored with gastrointestinal ultrasound (GIUS). They will undergo a detailed assessment with GIUS within 24 hours of hospital admission and again by Day 3 of the admission and at Day 7 of hospital admission (if relevant). Detailed assessment of baseline characteristics of the individuals enrolled will be recorded. Daily bloods tests, clinical symptoms and progress and any treatment interventions will be documented. Results of the routine endoscopic assessment will also be recorded. Faecal calprotectin samples will be obtained from patients and quality of life questionnaire will be completed. At discharge from hospital - routine follow up appointments will occur at 2 weeks and 3 monthly up to a year. Each follow up appointment will involve GIUS, review of clinical symptoms, blood tests, faecal calprotectin tests and quality of life questionnaires. GIUS is readily available for monitoring disease activity of patients with inflammatory bowel disease including ulcerative colitis. It is frequently used in the outpatient setting in hospitals that are experienced in this technique, however its role in the inpatient setting and in predicting treatment outcomes in acute severe flares, is yet to be defined. Of note, each GIUS assessment is performed by two independent gastroenterologists as part of this study. |