title: Rising incidence of pediatric inflammatory bowel disease in Scotland.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  An accurate indication of the changing incidence of pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (PIBD) within a population is useful in understanding concurrent etiological factors. We aimed to compare the current incidence and other demographic attributes of PIBD in the Scottish population to previous data.
  
  
  METHODS
  A national cohort of prospectively and retrospectively acquired incident cases of PIBD diagnosed less than 16 years old in pediatric services in Scotland was captured for the period 2003-2008; historical Scottish data were used for comparison (1990-1995). Age/sex-adjusted incidences were calculated and statistical comparisons made using Poisson regression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During the 2003-2008 study period 436 patients were diagnosed with PIBD in Scotland, giving an adjusted incidence of 7.82/100,000/year. The incidence of Crohn's disease (CD) was 4.75/100,000/year, ulcerative colitis (UC) 2.06/100,000/year, and inflammatory bowel disease-unclassified (IBDU) 1.01/100,000/year. Compared with data from 1990-1995 when 260 IBD patients were diagnosed, significant rises in the incidence of IBD (from 4.45/100,000/year, P < 0.0001), CD (from 2.86/100,000/year, P < 0.0001), and UC (from 1.59/100,000/year, P = 0.023) were seen. There was also a significant reduction in the median age at IBD diagnosis from 12.7 years to 11.9 years between the periods (P = 0.003), with a continued male preponderance.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The number of Scottish children diagnosed with IBD continues to rise, with a statistically significant 76% increase since the mid-1990 s. Furthermore, PIBD is now being diagnosed at a younger age. The reason for this continued rise is not yet clear; however, new hypotheses regarding disease pathogenesis and other population trends may provide further insights in future years.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Life and Health, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Henderson
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hansen
authors.forename: Fiona L
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Cameron
authors.forename: Kostas
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gerasimidis
authors.forename: Pam
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rogers
authors.forename: W Michael
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Bisset
authors.forename: Emma L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Reynish
authors.forename: Hazel E
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: Drummond
authors.forename: Niall H
authors.initials: NH
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: Johan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Van Limbergen
authors.forename: Richard K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Russell
authors.forename: Jack
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Satsangi
authors.forename: David C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Wilson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012606:Scotland / Q000453:epidemiology; D012737:Sex Factors