About Guidelines
The role of the ESGAR Research Committee is to initiate, coordinate and oversee the production and progress of ESGAR guidelines through to their completion and publication. Guideline-specific working groups that comprise ESGAR members who are experts in the field will develop these ESGAR guidelines.
The ESGAR Research Committee envisages two principal types of guidelines as follows:
- Monodisciplinary guidelines will be developed under sole ESGAR stewardship and will normally concern technical performance and protocols relevant to abdominal imaging using high technology imaging platforms.
- Multidisciplinary guidelines will normally describe the role of abdominal imaging in specific clinical circumstances, including comparison of multiple imaging techniques where appropriate. These multidisciplinary guidelines will normally be developed in collaboration with one or more relevant clinical societies.
ESGAR Guideline Development Manual
The Research Committee has developed a document describing the development process of an ESGAR guideline. This document is to be used for monodisciplinary ESGAR guidelines and may be used in multidisciplinary guidelines (to be determined together with the other involved society/societies).
Downloads
Call for experts
ESGAR & ESUR guidelines on Spectral CT of the abdomen
The ESGAR Research Committee is currently looking for experts to participate in joint ESGAR & ESUR guidelines on Spectral CT of the abdomen.
Spectral CT has become a valuable tool in abdominal imaging, thanks to its ability to distinguish tissues and materials based on their energy-dependent attenuation properties. However, there is a lack of guidelines/consensus regarding the appropriate use of this technology.
The primary aim of these guidelines/ expert consensus panel recommendations will be to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state-of-the-art clinical applications of Spectral CT in the evaluation of abdominal diseases. This includes defining appropriate indications, comparing approaches across various CT platforms, establishing optimal imaging protocols, reviewing available Spectral CT analysis tools, and evaluating the overall level of evidence supporting its use in abdominal imaging.
Interested ESGAR members are invited to contact the ESGAR Office before July 15, 2025 and provide a summary of their previous work in this area, including publications and guideline development experience. The selection process will consider candidates' academic achievements, past involvement, as well as the group's diversity and geographical representation to ensure a well-rounded team.
ESGAR members who have previously been involved with the guidelines are welcome to re-apply. Up to 5 ESGAR experts can be included. In addition, ESGAR Junior members are welcome to apply.
Please send your expression of interest via this link
Guidelines in progress
ONGOING GUIDELINES
- ESGAR/ESUR Guidelines on CT in Acute Abdomen
- ESGAR/EANM Consensus Guidelines for Imaging Anal Cancer
- ESGAR Guidelines for the Diagnostic Cross-Sectional Imaging in Primary sclerosing cholangitis
- ESGAR guideline for training and quality assurance in CT colonography
- Update to guideline: MRI for clinical management of rectal cancer (new edition will be split in two parts: part 1 staging and part 2 restaging)
GUIDELINES IN COLLABORATION WITH OR SUPPORTED BY ESGAR
- Guideline on Initial Assessment and Management of pancreatic lesions for Primary Care Practitioners (ESPCG)
- Pain management in acute pancreatitis (EPC)
- 2025 evidence-based European multi-societal guideline for pancreatic cancer (E-AHPBA/ESSO)
- Global guidelines on cystic neoplasms of the pancreas
- Fatty pancreas consensus statements (EPC)
- International, multidisciplinary guideline update, EAES Rapid Recommendation Update 2025: TaTME for Rectal Cancer (EAE, SAGES and ESCP)
- Management and follow up of gallbladder polyps: updated joint guidelines (ESGAR, EAES, EFISDS and ESGE)
- UEG initiative to develop quality indicators for pancreatic cancer care (EPC)
Proposal of new topics for ESGAR Guidelines
The membership is invited to propose topics for guidelines. Please be sufficiently specific in the topic description, indicate whether you think this should be more a technical guideline or a clinical (multidisciplinary) guideline and also describe the reason(s) for proposing the topic(s).
If you have more than one topic proposal, please submit these as separate topics.
Please contact office(at)esgar.org to submit your proposal.
Published Guidelines
ESGAR consensus statement on MR imaging in primary sclerosing cholangitis (April 2025)
The guideline was published in European Radiology.
ESSD–ESGAR best practice position statements on the technical performance of videofluoroscopic swallowing studies in adult patients with swallowing disorders (December 2024)
The guideline was published in European Radiology.
Imaging of peritoneal metastases of ovarian and colorectal cancer (November 2024)
Joint recommendations of ESGAR, ESUR, PSOGI, and EANM
The guideline was published in European Radiology.
Imaging in pelvic exenteration—a multidisciplinary practice guide from the ESGAR-SAR-ESUR-PelvEx collaborative group (August 2024)
The guideline was published in European Radiology.
Quantification of Liver Iron Overload with MRI (February 2023)
Review and Guidelines from the ESGAR and SAR
The guideline was published in Radiology.
Imaging standardisation in metastatic colorectal cancer (October 2022)
A joint EORTC-ESOI-ESGAR expert consensus recommendation
The guideline was published in the European Journal of Cancer.
ECCO-ESGAR Topical Review on Optimizing Reporting for Cross-Sectional Imaging in IBD (October 2021)
The guidelines were published in the Journal of Crohn's and Colitis.
Management and follow-up of gallbladder polyps (October 2021)
Updated joint guidelines between the ESGAR, EAES, EFISDS and ESGE
The guideline was published in European Radiology.
European Guideline on IgG4-related digestive disease (May 2020)
UEG and SGF evidence-based recommendations
The guideline was published in the UEG Journal.
European guidelines on chronic mesenteric ischaemia (April 2020)
The guideline was published in the UEG Journal.