Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of inflammatory bowel disease

Objective In our country, epidemiological and clinical data are insufficient for inflammatory bowel disease. There were no published data, especially about the Western Mediterranean. The purpose of this study is evaluation of clinical, epidemiological and demographical characteristics of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Material and Methods Total of 136 patients with a diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease were evaluated retrospectively. Questionnaires for each patient using data from the patient files and hospital were created. Results During the study period, 100 patients of UC and 36 patients of CD were identified. The mean age at diagnosis was 37.9±13.3 years in UK patients and 38±13.2 years in CD patients. The age of patients with CD showed the charasteristic biphasic distribution with 2 peaks between 20 and 30 and 50 and 60 years. The female/male ratio was 1/1 in CD and 1.4/1 in UK. In both groups, the majority of patients were living in urban areas, as 66.7% of patients with CD and 71% of patients with UC. Both diseases tended to occur mostly in patients with middle socioeconomic status. There was a history of smoking in 22 (22%) of UC patients and in 13 (36.1%) of CD patients. Oral contraceptive usage was avaliable in 4 (11.1%) and 11 (11%) patients with CD and UK, respectively. NSAİD usage was avaliable in 17 (47.2%) and 33 (22%) patients with CD and UK, respectively. The family history was positive in 3 (8.3%) of patients with CD and 11 (11%) of patients with UK Surgical interventions due to disease were more common in CD with 14 patients requiring surgery (38.8%). Contrarily, only 4 of patients with UK underwent surgery (4%). A history of appendectomy was dedected in 7 (19.4%) of patients with CD and in 7 (7%) of patients with UK. 5 of the patients who were primarily diagnosed with UK had their diagnosis changed to CD after the follow-up period, whereas 2 of the patients who were primarily diagnosed with CD had their diagnosis changed to UK. The mean lag time between the onset of complaints and confirmation of diagnosis was 12 and 2 month for CD and UK, respectively. The predominant complaints of UK patients at prezentation were hematochezia and/or bloody diarrhea, whereas the predominant complaint for CD was abdominal pain. As for complications, the most common extraintestinal complication in patients with UK and CD was found to be acute arthropathy. Local complications were commonly found in patients with CD and the commonest of those were fistula and abscess formation. Conclusion The majority of the study results were consistent with previous study results and literature data. Rates of patients with UC and CD showed regional differences. UK was significantly higher in patients with origin in the eastern Anatolia. The age of patients with CD showed the charasteristic biphasic distribution. The female/male ratio was higher in UK. Surgical interventions due to disease were more common in CD. There was a higher prevalence of misdiagnosis for CD. The mean time between the onset of symptoms and the time of diagnosis was significantly higher for CD