Mortality and Causes of Death in Ulcerative Colitis: Results from 20 Years of Follow-up in the IBSEN Study.
BACKGROUND
The best way to obtain knowledge about the natural history, including mortality, of ulcerative colitis (UC) is to conduct a longitudinal, population-based, prospective study. The aims of this study were to calculate the mortality rates and causes of death in patients with UC.


METHODS
A prospective, population-based, longitudinal cohort study was conducted in South-Eastern Norway. A total of 519 patients (51.4% men) with UC were included over a 4-year period. A gastroenterologist from a university hospital reviewed the clinical information of all of the patients. Mortality data were retrieved from the Cause of Death Registry and from Statistics Norway.


RESULTS
No statistically significant increases in total mortality or cause-specific mortality between the patients with UC and the controls were found.


CONCLUSIONS
The present 20-year population-based cohort study revealed a good prognosis regarding the mortality, which partially might be explained by the patients' coverage by a generally well-functioning health care system.
*Department of Gastroenterology, Innlandet Hospital Trust, Gjøvik, Norway, and Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; †Department of Biostatistics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; ‡Department of Gastroenterology, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; §Department for Research and Development, Telemark Hospital, Skien, Norway, and Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; ‖Department of Gastroenterology, Telemark Hospital, Skien, Skien, Norway; ¶Department of Internal Medicine, Sørlandet Hospital, Arendal, Norway; **Department of Gastroenterology, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway, and Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; ††Department of Internal Medicine, Diakonhjemmet Hospital, Oslo, Norway; ‡‡Department of Gastroenterology, Østfold Hospital, Fredrikstad, Norway; and §§Department of Gastroenterology, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway, and Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
Øistein
Ø
Hovde
Milada C
MC
Småstuen
Marte L
ML
Høivik
Tomm
T
Bernklev
Gert
G
Huppertz-Hauss
Ole
O
Høie
Jørgen
J
Jahnsen
Njaal
N
Stray
Magne
M
Henriksen
Inger C
IC
Solberg
Bjørn A
BA
Moum
D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002423:Cause of Death; D003093:Colitis, Ulcerative / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000401:mortality*; D003695:Delivery of Health Care; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009664:Norway / Q000453:epidemiology; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D015996:Survival Rate