Characteristics of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease in Children: A Croatian Single-Centre Retrospective Study

• Main Authors: Ivan Pivac (Author), Antonia Jelicic Kadic (Author), Ranka Despot (Author), Vanda Zitko (Author), Darija Tudor (Author), Edita Runjic (Author), Josko Markic (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: MDPI AG, 2023-10-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 10.3390/children10101677; 2227-9067
• Keywords: inflammatory bowel disease; IBD; ulcerative colitis; Crohn's disease; child; pediatric; Pediatrics; RJ1-570
• Source: Children, Vol 10, Iss 10, p 1677 (2023)

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs), encompassing ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD), are chronic gastrointestinal disorders often diagnosed in youth, presenting unique features compared to adult-onset cases. We aimed to profile pediatric IBD patients in Croatia through a retrospective analysis of children up to 18 years old diagnosed with IBD at the University Hospital of Split from 1 January 2012, to 31 December 2021, utilizing data collected during hospitalization for diagnosis. Over a decade, 107 children were diagnosed, with 43.9% having UC, 55.1% CD, and 0.9% IBD-unclassified. Median age at diagnosis was 14.1 years, with UC patients being older (14.8 vs. 13.7 years, <i>p</i> = 0.044). Males constituted 60.7% of patients. Median symptom duration was 2.0 months, with CD patients experiencing a longer diagnostic delay (3.0 vs. 2.0 months, <i>p</i> = 0.003). The median incidence rate was 9.89 (95% CI 5.93-13.84) per 100,000 children/year, varying across age groups. Median (IQR) BMI z-score was −0.34 (−0.97-0.45). Common symptoms included diarrhea (60.7%) and abdominal pain (50.5%), with rectal bleeding more prevalent in UC (72.3% vs. 32.2%, <i>p</i> < 0.001). While our study offers valuable insights into pediatric IBD in Croatia, further prospective research is needed to clarify disease progression and development.