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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study

Published on: February 2, 2017

Anthropometry at the time of diagnosis in Danish children with inflammatory bowel disease

Anders Paerregaard1, Frederikke Uldall Urne

  • 1Department of Paediatrics, Hvidovre University Hospital, Hvidovre, Denmark. anders.paerregaard@hh.hosp.dk

Acta Paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992)
|November 24, 2005
PubMed

Insights

Children with Crohn's disease (CD) show impaired growth and lower BMI at diagnosis compared to healthy children and those with ulcerative colitis (UC). Ulcerative colitis (UC) patients exhibit normal growth metrics, unlike CD patients who often face malnutrition and growth retardation.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Gastroenterology
  • Human Growth and Development

Background:

  • Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) encompasses Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), affecting children and adolescents.
  • Growth and nutritional status are critical indicators in pediatric IBD management.
  • Previous studies suggest varying impacts of CD and UC on child development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate and compare the anthropometric data (height and BMI) of pediatric patients diagnosed with IBD in Denmark.
  • To identify differences in growth parameters between children with Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) at the time of diagnosis.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of anthropometric data (height-for-age, BMI-for-age z-scores) at diagnosis.
  • Inclusion of pediatric patients (<15 years) diagnosed with IBD between 1998-2000 in eastern Denmark (n=94).
  • Comparison of growth metrics between CD patients, UC patients, and a healthy Danish child cohort.

Main Results:

  • Children with ulcerative colitis (UC) showed height-for-age and BMI-for-age z-scores comparable to healthy Danish children.
  • Pediatric patients diagnosed with Crohn's disease (CD) presented significantly lower height-for-age and BMI-for-age z-scores compared to both healthy children and UC patients.
  • These findings indicate that Crohn's disease (CD) is associated with malnutrition and growth retardation at diagnosis.

Conclusions:

  • Crohn's disease (CD) in children is frequently associated with significant malnutrition and growth retardation at the time of diagnosis.
  • Ulcerative colitis (UC) in pediatric patients does not appear to impact height or BMI at diagnosis compared to healthy peers.
  • Early identification of growth deficits in pediatric CD is crucial for timely intervention.
Abstract

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