Estimated incidence of inflammatory bowel disease in Argentina and Panama (1987-1993).
OBJECTIVE
to estimate the incidence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in two areas from Panama and Argentina.


METHODS
during a 7-year period from 1987 to 1993 we surveyed IBD in two well-defined communities from Panama (District of Colón) and Argentina (Partido General Pueyrredón). The mean annual incidence of IBD was estimated from hospital-based registries. Records from the General Records Department and the endoscopy, radiology and pathology services were reviewed at the Hospital MA Guerrero in Colón and at two other hospitals in Partido General Pueyrredón to identify suspected cases of IBD. Cases were confirmed using standard criteria, and disease incidence rates were calculated by dividing the number of cases in which a positive diagnosis could be established by the population served by each hospital.


RESULTS
mean annual incidence of ulcerative colitis in Panama was 1.2/100 000 inhabitants/year, and no cases of Crohn's disease (CD) could be diagnosed. Mean annual incidence of IBD in Partido General Pueyrredón was 2.2/100 000 inhabitants/year, with only a single case of CD being identified. We argue that such figures could represent a good estimate of the incidence of IBD in each area, given the wide coverage of the population by the hospitals surveyed in each region.


CONCLUSIONS
according to these results, the incidence rates of IBD seem to be much lower than those published for other "Hispanic" communities outside Latin America. Factors such as population structure, environment or genetic determinants might account for these differences.
Linares de la Cal
J A
JA
Hospital de la Princesa, Madrid, 28006, España.
Cantón
C
C
Hermida
C
C
Pérez-Miranda
M
M
Maté-Jiménez
J
J
D000328:Adult; D001118:Argentina / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010176:Panama / Q000453:epidemiology