Preventing recurrent acute diverticulitis with pharmacological therapies.

Acute diverticulitis of the colon represents a significant burden for national health systems, in terms of direct and indirect costs. Past guidelines claimed that recurrent episodes (two or more) of diverticulitis need surgery, but revised guidelines recommend an individualized approach to patients after an attack of acute diverticulitis. For these reasons, conservative treatment has become the preferred choice after an episode of diverticulitis. Thus, significant efforts are now being focused to identify the correct therapeutic approach to prevent diverticulitis relapses. Nonabsorbable antibiotics, 5-aminosalicylic acid and probiotics are currently being investigated in this way. The effectiveness and the future perspectives of these treatments are discussed herein.