The role of serum calprotectin as a novel biomarker in inflammatory bowel diseases: a review study

As the incidence of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) increases in the newly industrialized countries, the health and financial burden of disease also increase. These changes make the role of IBD biomarkers further crucial. Serum calprotectin, as a novel blood-based biomarker of IBD, has been investigated in several investigations. Yet, there is no consensus regarding its clinical utility. We searched the electronic database, including PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, and Web of Science up to the end of 2018 to find how serum calprotectin associates with the disease characteristics in IBD. The search terms included: inflammatory bowel diseases, IBD, Crohn Diseases (CD), Ulcerative Colitis (UC), calprotectin, serum, and blood. Based on our review, a biomarker role has been suggested for serum calprotectin in IBD, as significant associations were found between serum calprotectin and disease burden, prognosis, and relapse. A complementary role to fecal calprotectin has also been suggested for serum calprotectin. On the other hand, considering a significant correlation between serum calprotectin and serum CRP, but not fecal calprotectin, serum calprotectin could be more representative of systemic inflammation than an intestinal inflammation. Consequently, further researches are needed to unwrap the potential of serum calprotectin as a blood-based biomarker in IBD.