Clinical Research Directory

Validation of the Reliability and Validity of the New Endoscopic Scoring System for Ulcerative Colitis (CAT-DESIRE Score) and Verification of Its Clinical Practicability

Sponsor: Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases

Summary

Ulcerative Colitis (UC) is a chronic, non-specific intestinal inflammatory disease of unknown cause, featuring abdominal pain, diarrhea, and bloody stools. Endoscopy shows diffuse, continuous lesions with erosion and shallow ulcers, worst in the rectum and diminishing proximally. Current treatments (aminosalicylates, corticosteroids, immunosuppressants, biologics, small molecule drugs) are not curative. Endoscopic mucosal healing is a key treatment goal, improving steroid-free remission, reducing colectomy rates, recurrence, hospitalization, and colorectal cancer risk. Common endoscopic scoring systems: Baron score (poor consistency), Mayo Endoscopic Score (MES, simple but lacks prognostic info), and Ulcerative Colitis Endoscopic Severity Index (UCEIS, more detailed and consistent but cumbersome). Disease extent is important for severity, as proximal extension increases relapse, treatment escalation, and cancer risk. However, MES and UCEIS assess only the worst segment, underestimating total disease burden. Other scores (UCCIS, MMES, DUBLIN) attempt to incorporate lesion extent but have limitations (small samples, lack of validation, unclear severity cutoffs). Data on short-/medium-term endoscopic changes and long-term outcomes are scarce. We therefore propose a new endoscopic scoring system, the CAT-DESIRE score, aiming to evaluate its reliability, validity, and predictive role in medium-/long-term prognosis and treatment response, providing a simple, accurate tool for assessing disease burden and guiding clinical decisions.

Key Details

Conditions

Locations (9)