Lahat A, et al. - In this investigation, researchers compared clinical parameters, inflammatory cytokine expression, and immune-cell infiltrates between patients after severe vs nonsevere acute diverticulitis (AD), as defined by the acute episode radiology exam. For this analysis, they included 16 patients after an episode of AD, 8 of whom had severe illness. Clinically, there was a significantly greater prevalence of continued non-specific abdominal symptoms among patients after severe AD compared to patients after nonsevere AD. Patients also had significantly higher levels of C reactive protein after severe AD and a trend towards higher levels of calprotectin. Compared to patients after nonsevere AD, those after severe AD have more prolonged chronic symptoms, higher inflammatory markers, higher tissue inflammatory cytokine levels, and more inflammatory infiltrates in diverticular colonic tissue. These outcomes can contribute to the risk stratification of patients and guide therapeutic decisions.