Lung Involvement in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases: Shared Pathways and Unwanted Connections

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are chronic, relapsing inflammatory disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, frequently associated with extraintestinal manifestations (EIMs) that can severely affect IBD patients’ quality of life, sometimes even becoming life-threatening. Respiratory diseases have always been considered a rare and subsequently neglected extraintestinal manifestations of IBD. However, increasing evidence has demonstrated that respiratory involvement is frequent in IBD patients, even in the absence of respiratory symptoms. Airway inflammation is the most common milieu of IBD-related involvement, with bronchiectasis being the most common manifestation. Furthermore, significant differences in prevalence and types of involvement are present between Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. The same embryological origin of respiratory and gastrointestinal tissue, in addition to exposure to common antigens and cytokine networks, may all play a potential role in the respiratory involvement. Furthermore, other causes such as drug-related toxicity and infections must always be considered. This article aims at reviewing the current evidence on the association between IBD and respiratory diseases. The purpose is to raise awareness of respiratory manifestation among IBD specialists and emphasize the need for identifying respiratory diseases in early stages to promptly treat these conditions, avoid worsening morbidity, and prevent lung damage.