Dr. David Binion is a Professor of Medicine and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) investigator whose career has focused on defining the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying human chronic gut inflammation and the translation of this knowledge into improved care for patients suffering from Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Current work has centered on Big Data analytics and the development and transformation of the UPMC IBD Registry, a prospective, multi-year, longitudinal natural history registry database of >3,000 consented IBD patients into a metadata platform for scientific discovery. Working in collaboration with computer scientists from the University of Pittsburgh School of Information Science, this relational database continuously curates and transforms observational clinical information from the electronic medical record (EMR) and maintains >10,000 person-years of associated metadata in a secure data warehouse. Areas of active investigation include:
- Developing prognostic biomarkers of IBD severity.
- Characterizing the impact of diet and nutrition on IBD natural history.
- Identification of biomarker patterns to predict development of dysplasia/cancer in IBD.
- Identification of predictive biomarkers to guide therapeutic selection in IBD.
- Comparative effectiveness studies in IBD maintenance therapy.
- Defining the impact of surgical anastomotic technique on longterm clinical outcomes in Crohn’s disease.
- Use of healthcare charge data as a comprehensive phenotype.
- Defining the impact of Clostridium difficile infection on IBD natural history.
- Characterizing extra-intestinal manifestations including anemia and autonomic dysfunction on the natural history of IBD.
- Developing clinical decision support tools to optimize IBD care and implement precision medicine.
- AB, General Studies, Harvard College, 1984
- MD, State University of New York at Buffalo, 1988
- Residency, Rhode Island Hospital (Brown University), 1991
- Fellowship, Gastroenterology, University Hospitals of Cleveland (Case Western), 1993
- Research Fellow, Immunology, Cleveland Clinic Foundation Research Institute, 1993
Education & Training
Ahsan M, Koutroumpakis F, Rivers CR, Wilson AS, Johnston E, Hashash JG, Barrie A, Alchoufete T, Babichenko D, Tang G, Mollen K, Hand T, Szigethy E, Binion DG. High Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption Is Associated with Increased Health Care Utilization in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Multiyear, Prospective Analysis. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2022 Aug;122(8):1488-1498.e1. PMID: 34999242.
Dahar MM, Ramos Rivers C, Ahsan M, Johnston E, Dueker JM, Schwartz M, Alchoufete T, Binion DG. Positive Gluten Sensitivity Serologies and the Impact of Gluten-free Diet in Patients With IBD. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2022 Aug 1;28(8):e122-e123. PMID: 35275163.
Kuang R, O'Keefe SJD, Ramos Del Aguila de Rivers C, Koutroumpakis F, Binion DG. Is Salt at Fault? Dietary Salt Consumption and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2023 Jan 5;29(1):140-150. PMID: 35380668.
Hashash JG, Koutroumpakis F, Anderson AM, Rivers CR, Hosni M, Koutroubakis IE, Ahsan M, Gkiaouraki E, Dunn MA, Schwartz M, Barrie A, Babichenko D, Tang G, Binion DG. Elevated serum globulin fraction as a biomarker of multiyear disease severity in inflammatory bowel disease. Ann Gastroenterol. 2022 Nov-Dec;35(6):609-617. PMID: 36406970.
Ertem FU, Rivers CR, Watson AR, Tang G, Schwartz M, Johnston E, Barrie A, Harrison J, Dueker JM, Hartman D, Binion DG. Granuloma Presence at Initial Surgery Predicts Need for Repeat Surgery Independent of Rutgeerts Score in Crohn's Disease. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2023 Dec 5;29(12):1895-1900. PMID: 36721326.
Zhang X, Ramos-Rivers C, Prathapan K, Wang X, Tang G, Kim S, Binion DG. Peripheral Blood Monocytosis Is Associated With Long-Term Disease Severity in Pediatric-Onset Inflammatory Bowel Disease. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2023 Jun 1;76(6):756-762. PMID: 36827967.
Kuang R, Levinthal DJ, Ghaffari AA, Del Aguila de Rivers CR, Tansel A, Binion DG. Nightshade Vegetables: A Dietary Trigger for Worsening Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Irritable Bowel Syndrome? Dig Dis Sci. 2023 Jul;68(7):2853-2860. PMID: 37202602.
Hashash JG, Elkins J, Lewis JD, Binion DG. AGA Clinical Practice Update on Diet and Nutritional Therapies in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Expert Review. Gastroenterology. 2024 Mar;166(3):521-532. PMID: 38276922.
Ertem FU, Rivers CR, Ghaffari AA, Watson AR, Tang G, Schwartz M, Johnston E, Barrie A, Harrison J, Dueker JM, Hartman D, Binion DG. Efficacy of Ustekinumab and Vedolizumab Among Postoperative Crohn's Disease Patients as Postoperative Prophylaxis and Rescue Therapy: Real-world Data. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2025 Feb 6;31(2):461-466. PMID: 38953641.
Kuang R, Levinthal DJ, Cummings C, Ramos Rivers C, Ghaffari AA, Binion DG. Pain and IBD: The Contributing Role of Diet and Nutrition. Dig Dis Sci. 2025 Dec 6. PMID: 41351803.
- Fellow, American Gastroenterological Association, 2007
- Sherman Prize Recipient, 2018
- Pittsburgh Best Doctors 2021-22 (Pittsburgh Magazine & Castle Connolly), 2022
- Excellence in Healthcare Honoree - WPA/WV Chapter, Crohn's & Colitis Foundation, 2022
Mirador Therapeutics SRA00005709, Precision guided therapeutics for inflammation and fibrosis therapy in IBD, Phase II: tissue explant studies, PI, 2025-2026.
