Motility in paediatric Crohn's disease
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Quantitative measurement of small bowel Motility In Paediatric patients with Crohn’s disease and healthy volunteers: a pilot study
IRAS ID
284952
Contact name
Luca Marciani
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Nottingham Research & Innnovation
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 6 months, 31 days
Research summary
We have developed non-invasive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) methods to study the motility of the small bowel in adult patients with Crohn’s disease. The method involves a validated food stimulus (a soup meal) to kick-start gastrointestinal motility and imaging the participants at intervals during digestion, which allows to study motility of the bowel without using invasive intubation techniques.
Crohn’s disease is a big problem in children and young people too. However very little research on gastrointestinal motility has been carried out in children due to the invasiveness of the standard intubation methods.
In this pilot study we aim to apply the above MRI techniques to a group of young Crohn’s patients and matched healthy control participants. The aim is to collect initial data in the paediatric population and also evaluate feasibility of the MRI protocol in children and young people.
Lay summary of study results: The study aimed to investigate gastrointestinal function, using medical imaging (MRI) methods, in children with Crohn’s disease and to compare these against data from healthy children as controls. Specifically, the study aimed to measure the amount of gut motion (motility) following a soup meal or a standard nutrient meal replacement drink called Modulen. The study was affected by the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic on our research and recruited only 2 patients and 13 healthy participants and was closed when the funding run out and the researcher completed their doctorate degree.
The study itself did not have any problem and the protocol was accepted well by the young participants, and also by their carers. However, meaningful comparisons were not possible with only 2 datasets on patients.REC name
London - Queen Square Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/PR/0971
Date of REC Opinion
23 Apr 2021
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion