Diagnostic value of terminal ileum biopsy in chronic diarrhea with normal endoscopic appearance

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the diagnostic value of a terminal ileum biopsy in chronic non-bloody diarrhea with normal endoscopic appearance. METHODS: Patients who had a terminal ileum biopsy performed between January 2007 and January 2010 during a colonoscopy despite normal endoscopic appearance were reviewed. They were divided into two groups according to the indication for the colonoscopy: non-bloody diarrhea and non-diarrhea; and their histopathological findings were compared. RESULTS: By screening the colonoscopy records, 473 patients were found to have had a terminal ileum biopsy. Of these patients, 178 were excluded for various reasons. Finally, 295 patients were suitable for analysis. The non-bloody diarrhea group consisted of 135 patients, while the remaining 160 patients constituted the non-diarrhea group. A histopathological examination of the terminal ileum biopsy specimens in the non-bloody diarrhea group revealed an abnormal histology in eight patients (5.9%), compared with five patients (3.1%) in the non-diarrhea group. No statistically significant difference was found between the two groups (P = 0.26). CONCLUSION: Although performing a biopsy of the terminal ileum despite a macroscopically normal appearance may offer some additional benefit to the diagnosis of chronic non-bloody diarrhea, prospective trials are needed for assessing the diagnostic value of a terminal ileum biopsy in patients with chronic diarrhea.