Atsushi Sakuraba

Dr. Atsushi Sakuraba is an Associate Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at Rush Medical College, Rush University. He specializes in gastroenterology with a focus on inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), particularly Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. His clinical and research expertise includes endoscopic evaluation of IBD, J-pouch outcomes after proctocolectomy, and the impact of biologic therapies on disease recurrence and clinical outcomes.

Dr. Sakuraba completed his medical degree at Keio University School of Medicine (Japan) and fellowships in gastroenterology at Keio University Hospital and inflammatory bowel disease at the University of Chicago Medical Center. His research interests span IBD pathophysiology, endoscopic imaging innovations, and optimizing surgical and medical management strategies for IBD patients.

His recent work emphasizes:

• Gender-specific effects of surgical interventions on IBD outcomes
• Impact of mental health conditions on IBD hospitalization costs
• Long-term outcomes of J-pouch patients using novel endoscopic classification systems
• Role of PPIs in modifying IBD treatment efficacy
• Real-world safety/effectiveness of emerging biologics like upadacitinib

Dr. Sakuraba’s clinical practice focuses on complex IBD cases, with expertise in managing post-surgical complications, pouchitis, and inflammatory bowel-associated malignancies.