Inflammatory Bowel Disease in US Youth Among Highest Globally

More than 100,000 young Americans under the age of 20 live with inflammatory bowel disease, a pioneering study has revealed.
The study, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, demonstrates that the prevalence of pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in the United States is increasing, while also being among the highest globally.
The landmark study, published in the journal Gastroenterology, is the most comprehensive assessment to date of IBD among American youth. IBD is a group of chronic conditions characterized by inflammation of the digestive tract, primarily Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
Crohn’s disease can affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract, while ulcerative colitis is limited to the colon and rectum. Symptoms often include abdominal pain, diarrhea, fatigue, and weight loss. The exact cause of IBD remains uncertain, but it is thought to involve an overactive immune response, genetic predisposition and environmental triggers.
“Our findings reveal that pediatric IBD affects a significant number of American youth, with prevalence rates among the highest reported worldwide,” study lead investigator Michael Kappelman, a professor of pediatrics and epidemiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said in a press release. “This study provides crucial data to inform healthcare policy, resource allocation, and future research priorities in pediatric IBD.”
The latest study involved an analysis of data from commercial insurance claims datasets and Medicaid data from five states (Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and California), as well as the 2020 United States Census. This work enabled the team to generate national prevalence estimates for IBD.
This investigation found that an estimated 100,429 Americans below the age of 20 are living with IBD. The prevalence of Crohn’s disease (71 per 100,000) is higher than that of ulcerative colitis (44 per 100,000) in this population, the data shows.
The authors also determined that there has been an increase in prevalence of around 22 percent for Crohn’s disease and 29 percent for ulcerative colitis in this population compared to 2009 data.
Besides these findings, the study revealed significant variations across racial and ethnic groups, as well as between regions. For example, the study found that the highest prevalence rates are among White youth.
“This comprehensive evaluation of pediatric IBD prevalence in the U.S. is an important step in understanding the full spectrum of the disease in our youth,” study co-author Andrés Hurtado-Lorenzo, with the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation, said in the press release. “These data are essential for health care professionals and policymakers to effectively manage pediatric IBD, make informed public health decisions, and ultimately improve outcomes for affected children and adolescents.”
Future research is required to understand more about the drivers of the observed demographic and geographic variations in IBD prevalence, according to the authors.
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