Perianal disease takes many forms, is very common and can impair quality of life significantly. The symptoms of perianal disease, including pain, bleeding, discharge and pruritus, are common to several conditions that are sometimes difficult to disentangle. It is crucial to identify the serious causes of perianal symptoms, but also to reduce the burden of the less dangerous conditions that nevertheless can be debilitating and interfere with an individual’s work, social or intimate life. Below we discuss some of the frequent and important mistakes made in the management of perianal disease based, where possible, on evidence, and where not, on clinical experience.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a growing cause of chronic liver disease worldwide that can manifest as nonalcoholic fatty liver (NAFL) or nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Compared with NAFL, NASH poses a substantially higher risk of progression to advanced liver disease, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Given the lack of directed pharmacological therapies and the complex, multifactorial disease aetiology and pathology, NAFLD is expected to become the leading cause of end-stage liver disease in the coming decades.

The introduction and general use of new immunosuppressive agents, including biologic agents and small molecules, has revolutionised the therapeutic management of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Such immunosuppression may expose patients to opportunistic infections, which can be challenging to recognise. These infections are crucial due to their association with morbidity or mortality and the challenges regarding effective treatment. New evidence in this field and vaccination strategies for immunosuppressed IBD patients led to updated European Crohn’s and Colitis Organization (ECCO) guidelines in 2021. Here we discuss the errors to avoid when managing the risk of opportunistic infections in IBD patients. The discussion is based on evidence, whenever possible, and our clinical experience.

Refractory coeliac disease (RCD) is characterized by the persistence or recurrence of symptoms and signs of malabsorption associated with villous atrophy in patients with coeliac disease who have adhered to a strict gluten-free diet (GFD) for more than 12 months.^1–3 Serology is usually negative or, in a small percentage of cases, positive at a low titre.⁴ Splenic hypofunction, a risk factor for RCD, can be indicated by Howell–Jolly bodies and pitted red cells in a peripheral blood smear. A reduced spleen size visible on ultrasound examination also provides direct evidence of hyposplenism.⁵