[Pediatric inflammatory bowel disease: is it still increasing?]

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Gastroenterology
• Chronic Disease Epidemiology
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Research

Context:

• Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), encompassing Crohn's disease (CD), Ulcerative Colitis (UC), and Indeterminate Colitis (IC), is increasingly diagnosed in pediatric populations.
• Global incidence of IBD has shown a significant upward trend over the past five decades, particularly in industrialized nations.

Purpose:

• To characterize the pediatric IBD population diagnosed and followed at Hospital de Dona Estefânia (HDE).
• To analyze trends in IBD diagnosis, clinical presentation, and time to diagnosis in children over a 23-year period (1987-2009).

Summary:

• A retrospective study of 100 pediatric IBD patients revealed a rising incidence, with CD being the most prevalent diagnosis (59%).
• The period 2005-2009 saw the highest number of new cases, averaging 11 per year, compared to 1.5 per year between 1987-1992.
• While the time from symptom onset to diagnosis decreased significantly (from 9 to 4 months), the mean age at diagnosis (10.5 years) and common presenting symptoms (abdominal pain, diarrhea, hematochezia) remained consistent.

Impact:

• Highlights the increasing burden of pediatric IBD, emphasizing the need for early detection and management strategies.
• Provides valuable epidemiological data on pediatric IBD trends, informing public health initiatives and clinical practice guidelines.
• Demonstrates improvements in diagnostic timeliness, potentially leading to better patient outcomes in pediatric IBD.