ABSTRACT
Objective:To analyze the relationship between mesenteric fat or creeping fat and bowel stricture or penetrating disease of Crohn's disease (CD).Methods:Clinical data of 101 CD patients undergoing bowel surgery at Department of General Surgery in our hospital between Mar 2021 and Dec 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. The characteristics of mesenteric fat, creeping fat, luminal cross-section diameter, and the intestinal stricture index were analyzed. The Spearman correlation analysis was used to evaluate the correlation between disease behavior and mesenteric fat score or creeping fat score.Results:Totally 101 CD patients were enrolled, with 68 stricturing diseases and 33 penetrating diseases. CD patients with stricturing diseases had higher score of mesenteric disease activity index (4.6±1.9 vs. 3.7±2.0, t=2.212, P=0.029) and creeping fat index (4.2±2.0 vs. 2.9±1.6, t=3.154, P=0.002) than those in patients with penetrating diseases. The mesenteric fat and creeping fat score positively correlated with the intestinal stricture index, C-reactive protein, and fecal calprotectin, and negatively correlated with minimum luminal cross-section diameter. Conclusion:The higher score of mesenteric fat and creeping fat were observed in CD patients with stricturing disease, which were associated with intestinal stricture index and inflammation status.