Invitiation

We would like to invite you to take part in the Open-IBD research study as you have been referred to hospital with symptoms that may be caused by Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). There are two common subtypes of IBD: Crohn’s Disease (“Crohn’s”) and Ulcerative colitis (“Colitis”). Crohn’s and Colitis are long-term conditions that cause inflammation of the digestive tract and can result in challenging symptoms including diarrhoea, abdominal pain, weight loss and fatigue. Crohn’s and Colitis symptoms and disease behaviour can vary significantly from one person to the next. An individual’s disease can also behave very differently throughout their life. While some patients will have mild symptoms that respond to simple treatments, others will develop more severe symptoms and problems over time.  The exact cause of Crohn’s and Colitis, as well as what influences this behaviour in different individuals, remains unknown.

Our team of researchers think that studying the behaviour of human cells in the blood and gut, plus studying diet and gut microbes (bacteria, viruses and fungi) at the time of Crohn’s and Colitis diagnosis, and repeatedly over the first 2 years may help to better understand why everyone’s experience is so different. We hope that doing this will allow us to work out who most needs treatment early after diagnosis, and which treatment to choose.

We are contacting you prior to your diagnostic tests as we want to identify what factors influence the disease in the very early stages. By enrolling in this study you will be participating in the largest study of its kind related to Crohn’s and Colitis.

This Participant Information Sheet outlines what taking part in the study entails. It should help you to reach an informed decision as to whether you would like to take part in the study.

Your local hospital research team will get in touch with you to discuss the study. In the meantime, if you have any concerns or questions, you can contact them via the details at the end of this document. Thank you for taking the time to consider participating in the study and be assured if you decide not to join, your care will not be affected in any way.