Editorial
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World J Gastroenterol. Sep 14, 2013; 19(34): 5593-5597
Published online Sep 14, 2013. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i34.5593
Confocal laser endomicroscopy in inflammatory bowel diseases: Dream or reality?
Giovanni Domenico De Palma, Antonio Rispo
Giovanni Domenico De Palma, Antonio Rispo, Center of Excellence for Technical Innovation in Surgery, Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University “Federico II” of Naples, School of Medicine, 80131 Naples, Italy
Author contributions: All authors contributed equally to this work.
Correspondence to: Giovanni Domenico De Palma, Director, Professor, Center of Excellence for Technical Innovation in Surgery, Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University “Federico II” of Naples, School of Medicine, Via S. Pansini 5, 80131 Naples, Italy. giovanni.depalma@unina.it
Telephone: +39-81-7462773 Fax: +39-81-7462752
Received: May 25, 2013
Revised: June 27, 2013
Accepted: August 4, 2013
Published online: September 14, 2013
Processing time: 111 Days and 20.8 Hours
Abstract

Confocal laser endomicroscopy (CLE) is a newly introduced procedure that provide real-time, high-resolution imaging of the gastrointestinal mucosa during endoscopy, allowing the visualization of the pathology of the mucosal epithelium with its cellular and subcellular structures. Recently, the use of CLE was reported in the study of colonic mucosa in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases and in particular in patients affected by ulcerative colitis. CLE has the potential to have an important role in management of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) patients as it can be used to assess the grading of colitis and in detection of microscopic colitis in endoscopically silent segments. Moreover, CLE can be used in surveillance programs especially in high-risk patients. Finally, CLE has been effectively used in diagnosing a biliary dysplasia/neoplasia in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis, a pathological condition frequently associated with IBD, with a coexisting bile duct stricture.

Keywords: Inflammatory bowel diseases; Endoscopy; Confocal laser endomicroscopy; Colon cancer; Dysplasia

Core tip: This paper reviews the current data on the clinical application of confocal laser endomicroscopy (CLE) in the study of colonic mucosa in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (ulcerative colitis and Chron’s disease). Moreover, the use of CLE has in diagnosing a biliary dysplasia/neoplasia in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis, is evidenced.