LB023 - THE ROLE OF MUSCLE MASS AND FAT MASS IN PATIENTS WITH ULCERATIVE COLITIS AND CROHN'S DISEASE ASSESSED BY BIOELECTRICAL IMPEDANCE ANALYSIS

LB023

THE ROLE OF MUSCLE MASS AND FAT MASS IN PATIENTS WITH ULCERATIVE COLITIS AND CROHN'S DISEASE ASSESSED BY BIOELECTRICAL IMPEDANCE ANALYSIS

Z. Sundov^1,*, A. Krizman², I. Šustić¹, I. Jukić¹, J. Vuković¹

¹Gastroenterology, Clinical Hospital Centre Split, ²General Practice, Health Center of Split-Dalmatian County, Split, Croatia

Rationale: Nutritional status is a important prognostic factor in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD), and is known to correlate with disease-related morbidity and mortality. Despite its clinical importance, no single gold standard exists for assessing nutritional status in IBD. This study aimed to investigate the role of muscle mass and fat mass in patients with UC and CD using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA).

Methods: A total of 76 patients with IBD (34 with UC and 42 with CD) in clinical remission (Harvey-Bradshaw Index <5 for CD; Mayo Score =1 for UC), all receiving biological therapy, were included in the study. Body composition was assessed using bioelectrical impedance analysis (Tanita MC 780-U), focusing on measurements of muscle mass and fat mass. Results were compared with a control group of 60 non-IBD individuals attending the day hospital. Statistical analysis was performed using the independent samples t-test, and standard deviations were calculated for each group.

Results: Among IBD patients, no statistically significant differences were observed in fat mass or muscle mass when compared to controls. Specifically, CD patients showed no significant difference in fat mass (p=0.81) or muscle mass (p=0.20), while UC patients similarly demonstrated no significant differences in fat mass (p=0.22) or muscle mass (p=0.31).

Conclusion: Our findings support the clinical utility of assessing muscle and fat mass in patients with IBD using BIA, particularly for nutritional monitoring during remission. The results are consistent with existing literature indicating that patients with moderate to severe IBD in remission do not significantly differ from healthy controls in terms of body composition. BIA represents a valuable, non-invasive tool for evaluating nutritional status and may serve as an indicator of treatment effectiveness in IBD.

References: 1. Liu, Y.; Li, J.; Yang, G.; Meng, D.; Long, X.;Wang, K. Global burden of inflammatory bowel disease in the elderly: Trends from 1990 to 2021 and projections to 2051. Front. Aging. 2024, 5, 1479928.

2.Jabłońska B, Mrowiec S. Nutritional Status and Its Detection in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Diseases. Nutrients. 2023;15(8).

3. Bischoff SC, Escher J i sur. ESPEN practical guideline : Clinical Nutrition in inflammatory bowel disease. Clinical nutrition (Edinburgh, Scotland). 2020;39(3):632-53.

Disclosure of Interest: None declared