Real-Life Management of Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis and Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis–Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Integrating Liver and Bowel Care

Description

Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) remains without an approved medical therapy, leaving clinicians to navigate highly variable and often conflicting real-world practices. Many patients receive ursodiol; others receive oral vancomycin (OV), and bowel-directed therapies that are inconsistently integrated despite strong evidence that PSC is a gut-liver axis disease. This session provides a practical, case-based update on how PSC and PSC with inflammatory bowel disease (PSC–IBD) are currently managed in real clinical settings across hepatology, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and pediatrics. Faculty review: How, when, and whether ursodiol is used in practice Evidence and mechanisms behind OV therapy—including dosing strategies, absorption/formulation issues, relapse with discontinuation, subgroup differences, and common misuse Management of IBD in persons with PSC including key considerations and the best options for treatment The session emphasizes real-life decision-making, areas of persistent disagreement, and points of consensus emerging across hepatology and gastroenterology with the goal of equipping clinicians with practical, patient-centered guidance that they can immediately apply.

Presentations

9:45 AM - 9:50 AM
Convention Center - Bluebird Ballroom 3GH

Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis Today: Variability in Practice and the Need for Integrated Care

Gideon M Hirschfield, FRCP, PhD | Moderator
9:50 AM - 10:00 AM
Convention Center - Bluebird Ballroom 3GH

The Gut-Liver Pathobiology and the Mechanistic Rationale for Therapy Selection: Ursodiol, Oral Vancomycin, and Other Bowel Management Therapies

Palak J Trivedi, BSc (hons), MBBS, MRCP, PhD, ESEGH | Presenter
10:00 AM - 10:10 AM
Convention Center - Bluebird Ballroom 3GH

Oral Vancomycin Versus Biologics in Adult Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis and Children Transitioned to Adult Care: Real-World Practice, Misuse, and Underuse

Shamita Shah, MD | Presenter
10:10 AM - 10:20 AM
Convention Center - Bluebird Ballroom 3GH

Therapies for Children and Children Transitioning to Adult Care With Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis/Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis–Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Lessons From 25 Years of Clinical Use of Oral Vancomycin

Ryan Fischer, MD | Presenter
10:20 AM - 10:30 AM
Convention Center - Bluebird Ballroom 3GH

Pediatric Clinical Practice: Translational Opportunities

Peter J Lewindon, MBBS (Lon) | Presenter

Objectives

  • Describe current real-world management patterns in primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and primary sclerosing cholangitisinflammatory bowel disease (PSCIBD), including the roles and limitations of ursodiol, oral vancomycin, and bowel-directed therapies.
  • Summarize the clinical, biochemical, and mechanistic evidence for oral vancomycinincluding dosing considerations, relapse patterns, subgroup responses, and the gut-liver axis rationaleand compare with the effectiveness and safety of biologics for patients with PSCIBD.
  • Identify common pitfalls and misapplications of oral vancomycin therapy (eg, underdosing, cessation in responders, capsule versus liquid issues).
  • Review integration of practical bowel management strategies into PSC care, understanding how IBD control influences (or does not influence) liver outcomes.
  • Explain why the selection of medication must take into consideration the coexisting PSC and possible future liver transplant.