Premium
Risk factors for inflammatory bowel disease in the general population
Author(s) -
GARCÍA RODRÍGUEZ L. A.,
GONZÁLEZPÉREZ A.,
JOHANSSON S.,
WALLANDER M.A.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
alimentary pharmacology and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.308
H-Index - 177
eISSN - 1365-2036
pISSN - 0269-2813
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2036.2005.02564.x
Subject(s) - medicine , inflammatory bowel disease , ulcerative colitis , incidence (geometry) , disease , gastroenterology , cohort , crohn's disease , population , cohort study , etiology , physics , environmental health , optics
Summary Background: The aetiology of inflammatory bowel disease remains largely unknown. Aim: We performed a comprehensive assessment of potential risk factors associated with the occurrence of inflammatory bowel disease. Methods: We identified a cohort of patients 20–84 years old between 1995 and 1997 registered in the General Practitioner Research Database in the UK. A total of 444 incident cases of IBD were ascertained and validated with the general practitioner. We performed a nested case–control analysis using all cases and a random sample of 10 000 frequency‐matched controls. Results: Incidence rates for ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, and indeterminate colitis were 11, 8, and 2 cases per 100 000 person‐years, respectively. Among women, we found that long‐term users of oral contraceptives were at increased risk of developing UC (OR: 2.35; 95% CI: 0.89–6.22) and CD (OR: 3.15; 95% CI: 1.24–7.99). Similarly, long‐term users of HRT had an increased risk of CD (OR: 2.60; 95% CI: 1.04–6.49) but not UC. Current smokers experienced a reduced risk of UC along with an increased risk of CD. Prior appendectomy was associated with a decreased the risk of UC (OR: 0.37; 95% CI: 0.14–1.00). Conclusions: Our results support the hypothesis of an increased risk of inflammatory bowel disease associated with oral contraceptives use and suggest a similar effect of hormone replacement therapy on CD. We also confirmed the effects of smoking and appendectomy on inflammatory bowel disease.