Regular surveillance by swallowing a video capsule may be the best predictor of flares in patients with quiescent Crohn’s disease, according to a new study.

Israeli researchers compared four different surveillance methods to find which best predicted flares over their two-year study: C-reactive protein levels, faecal calprotectin levels, magnetic resonance enterography and video capsule endoscopy in 61 patients.

Video capsule endoscopy, performed every six months, was most effective at predicting flares over the coming two years, the researchers found.

In the study, a Lewis score was calculated from the images taken by the capsule. This was the strongest predictor at baseline of which patients would have a flare over the ensuing two years.