Zaher Lakkis

Background and Aims Postoperative recurrence is a major concern in Crohn’s disease. The Kono-S anastomosis has been described to reduce the rate of recurrence. However, the level of evidence for its effectiveness remains low. The KoCoRICCO study aimed to compare outcomes between Kono-S anastomosis and conventional anastomosis in two nationwide, prospective cohorts. Methods Adult patients with Crohn’s disease, who underwent ileocolonic resection with Kono-S anastomosis, were prospectively included in seven referral centres between 2020 and 2022. Patients with conventional side-to-side anastomosis were enrolled from a previously published cohort. A propensity score analysis was performed to compare recurrence at first endoscopy in a matched 1:2 ratio population. Results A total of 433 patients with ileocolonic anastomosis were enrolled, of whom 155 had a Kono-S anastomosis. Before matching, both groups were unbalanced for preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative characteristics. After matching patients with available endoscopic follow-up, endoscopic recurrence ≥i2 was found in 47.5% of the Kono-S group and 44.3% of the conventional side-to-side group [p = 0.6745]. Conclusions The KoCoRICCO study suggests that Kono-S anastomosis does not reduce the risk of endoscopic recurrence in Crohn’s disease compared with conventional side-to-side anastomosis. Further research with a longer follow-up is necessary to determine whether there is a potential benefit on surgical recurrence.