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Seasonal variations in onset and exacerbation of inflammatory bowel diseases in children
Rajmohan Dharmaraj1, Anas Jaber2, Rajan Arora3
1Department of Pediatrics, St. John Providence Children's Hospital, Detroit, MI, 48236, USA. drrajmohan.d@gmail.com.
Insights
Pediatric inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) show a seasonal onset trend, with most cases beginning in the fall. However, IBD exacerbations and birth seasonality were not observed in children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Epidemiology
- Immunology
Background:
- Emerging evidence suggests seasonal patterns in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) onset and exacerbations.
- Understanding these patterns in pediatric populations is crucial for early diagnosis and management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate seasonal trends in the onset and exacerbation of pediatric IBD.
- To determine if there is a seasonal pattern in the birth dates of children diagnosed with IBD.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 170 pediatric patients (ages 1-21) diagnosed with IBD between 1992 and 2012.
- Recording of IBD onset and exacerbation seasons.
- Analysis of patient birth dates for seasonal distribution patterns.
Main Results:
- A significant trend for IBD onset was observed, with 34% of cases occurring in the fall and 19% in the summer.
- IBD exacerbations were uniformly distributed throughout the year, with a median of two exacerbations per patient.
- No specific seasonal pattern was identified for the birth dates of children diagnosed with IBD.
Conclusions:
- Pediatric IBD onset exhibits a seasonal trend, peaking in the fall.
- No association was found between seasonality and IBD exacerbations in children.
- There is no evidence of a seasonal predisposition for birth in pediatric IBD patients.
Background:
Studies have suggested that inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) follow a seasonal pattern with regard to their onset and exacerbations. The aim of this study is to determine if there is any seasonal pattern to the onset and exacerbation of IBD in the pediatric population and if the birth of children diagnosed with IBD follows a seasonal pattern.
Methods:
Patients between the ages of 1 and 21 years and with a diagnosis of IBD established between July 1992 and July 2012 were included. Their onset and exacerbations of IBD (year and season) were recorded. The birth dates of the patients were aggregated to determine whether a seasonal birth pattern existed amongst them.
Results:
A total of 170 children were included in this study; 34% of patients had their onset in the fall and 19% of them had their onset in the summer. The total number of documented exacerbations was 358 and the median number of exacerbations was two, with a range of 1-11. IBD exacerbations were generally uniformly distributed throughout the year. We did not observe any specific season where children with IBD tended to be born.
Conclusions:
Our data suggests that the onset of symptoms of IBD tends to have a seasonal trend with the highest incidence in the fall. However, we did not observe any association between seasonality and exacerbations in the pediatric population. Moreover, there was no specific season in which children with IBD tended to be born in greater numbers.
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