The albumin to globulin ratio is associated with clinical outcome in Japanese patients with ulcerative colitis

Purpose@#The albumin-to-globulin ratio (AGR) is a recognized chronic inflammation marker. No evidence regarding the relationship between AGR level and ulcerative colitis (UC) exists. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between AGR and clinical outcomes among Japanese subjects with UC. @*Methods@#The study subjects consisted of 273 Japanese individuals with UC. AGR was divided into 4 categories (low, moderate, high, and very high). The definition of complete mucosal healing (MH) was based on the Mayo endoscopic subscore of 0. Clinical remission (CR) was defined as no rectal bleeding and no abnormally high stool frequency (<3 times per day). @*Results@#The percentage of MH was 26.4%. High AGR and very high AGR were significantly positively correlated with CR (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 5.85; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.52–14.18 and adjusted OR, 4.97; 95% CI, 2.14–12.04) and complete MH (adjusted OR, 4.03; 95% CI, 1.56–11.51 and adjusted OR, 5.22; 95% CI, 1.97–14.89), respectively after adjustment for confounding factors (P for trend=0.001). Only in the low C-reactive protein (CRP) group (≤0.1 mg/dL), very high AGR was significantly positively correlated with complete MH but not CR (adjusted OR, 4.38; 95% CI, 1.06–21.77; P for trend=0.017). In the high CRP group, no correlation between AGR and complete MH was found. @*Conclusion@#Among Japanese patients with UC, AGR may be independently positively correlated with complete MH. In particular, among UC patients with low CRP, AGR might be a useful complementary marker for complete MH.

Magnifying Endoscopy for Intestinal Follicular Lymphoma Is Helpful for Prompt Diagnosis

The representative endoscopic features of primary intestinal follicular lymphoma are well known as small whitish polypoid nodules, but a magnified view has only been described in a few case reports. Herein, we report a case with intestinal follicular lymphoma in which magnifying endoscopy with narrow band imaging was helpful for prompt diagnosis. A 57-year-old Japanese woman underwent surveillance esophagogastroduodenoscopy. The endoscopic examination revealed confluent whitish granules in the duodenum, distinct from the nodules or polyps that are typical findings of intestinal follicular lymphoma. Magnifying endoscopy visualized whitish enlarged villi, and narrow band imaging emphasized an elongated and coiled vascular pattern. Based on these features, intestinal follicular lymphoma was highly suspected, and subsequent histological study confirmed the diagnosis. This case demonstrates that magnifying endoscopy with narrow band imaging was useful for the detection and prompt diagnosis of intestinal follicular lymphoma. The pathological features of intestinal follicular lymphoma are also discussed.