A Fecal Calprotectin Test for Inflammatory Bowel Disease?

Elevated levels of calprotectin — a protein in the cytosol of inflammatory cells — is associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Because calprotectin is stable in stool samples for up to 7 days at room temperature, simple tests based on fecal levels of the protein could be used to screen for IBD. However, such testing is seldom undertaken in clinical practice in the U.S.

Now, investigators have performed a meta-analysis of 13 studies (6 in adults, 7 in children and adolescents) that assessed the diagnostic accuracy of fecal calprotectin testing in a total of 1041 patients with suspected IBD. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of fecal calprotectin testing were 0.93 and 0.96, respectively, in the studies of adults and 0.92 and 0.76…