UPMC Children’s GI News from the Advances in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases Symposium

Faculty from the UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition led numerous sessions and presented original research at the 2021 Advances in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases Symposium held December 9-11, 2021 in Orlando, Florida.

Sandra C. Kim, MD, director of the UPMC Children’s Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Center co-moderated the Pediatric Track at this year’s symposium, and she also gave presentations in several of the educational sessions. Dr. Kim gave a lecture on Cost and Access to Care in Pediatric IBD in the session on Innovations and Approaches in IBD Care for Children With IBD, and co-moderated the panel discussion during the Friday session. Dr. Kim also served as a panelist in one of the clinical tracks discussing Managing Common EIMS Less Discussed: Hidradenitis, VTE, Pulmonary.

Dr. Kim is  a nationally recognized expert in pediatric and adolescent inflammatory bowel diseases. In addition to leading the UPMC Children’s IBD Center, Dr. Kim is also associate professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Kim’s clinical and research interests focus on pediatric inflammatory bowel diseases, including adolescent transitioning and quality improvement in pediatric IBD and the impact of the gastrointestinal microbiota in IBD. Her research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. She has authored numerous studies on pediatric and adolescent inflammatory bowel diseases. Dr. Kim served as a past chair of Pediatric Affairs and Government Affairs/Advocacy for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation (CCF) nationally. In addition, she serves on the Physician Leadership committee and co-chairs the DEI Committee for Improve Care Now, a national pediatric IBD quality improvement collaborative. As a reflection of her dedication to her profession, Dr. Kim was awarded the 2011 and 2018 Rosenthal Awards for her leadership in patient education and advocacy by the CCF. In addition, she was one of the Foundation's 2020 Uniting to Care and Cure recipients.

Kevin P. Mollen, MD, surgical director of the UPMC Children’s IBD Center, gave a presentation during the Pediatric Session entitled “Don’t Be Late to the Party: When to Call Your Surgeon.” Dr. Mollen also served as a panelist in the Challenging Cases in Pediatric IBD session and in the Medical/Surgical Collaborative Decision-Making session case discussion on “Rescue, Resect, Divert, or Connect?” 

Dr. Mollen is an Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and a nationally recognized leader in the surgical care of children with IBD. In addition to his clinical work, Dr. Mollen is funded by the NIH to study mitochondrial dysfunction within the intestinal epithelium during IBD. He is also a recipient of the Litwin Pioneers Award from the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation for 2021. He serves on the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation Clinical Research Investigator-Initiated Awards Committee and the Steering Committee for the 2022 Advanced in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Annual Conference.

Kevin Cesa, MD, fellow in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at UPMC Children’s was awarded Best 2021 AIBD Abstract in Pediatrics for his research on “Parental Distress in Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease.” Dr. Cesa is mentored in his research by Dr. Kim, and Robert Noll, PhD, professor of Pediatrics, Psychiatry, and Psychology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

Erin Crawford, MD, fellow in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at UPMC Children’s presented an abstract, along with Dr. Kim, on research discussing “Tofacitinib-Induced Resolution of Severe Colitis and Reactive Atypia in An Adolescent Patient.”