The time to Inflammatory Bowel Disease diagnosis for patients presenting with abdominal symptoms in primary care and its association with emergency hospital admissions and surgery : a retrospective cohort study
Umar, Nosheen Harvey, Phil Adderley, Nicola J Haroon, Shamil
Umar, Nosheen
Harvey, Phil
Adderley, Nicola J
Haroon, Shamil
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Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust; University of Birmingham; Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust; National Institute for Health and Care Research Birmingham Biomedical Research Centre
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Publication date
2024-04-02
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Abstract
Background: Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) presenting to primary care may experience diagnostic delays. We aimed to evaluate this and assess whether time to diagnosis is associated with clinical outcomes. Methods: A retrospective cohort study using English primary care data from January 1, 2010, to December 31, 2019, linked to hospital admission data was undertaken. Patients were followed from the first IBD-related presentation in primary care to IBD diagnosis. Associations of time to diagnosis exceeding a year were assessed using a Robust Poisson regression model. Associations between time to diagnosis and IBD-related emergency hospital admissions and surgery were assessed using Poisson and Cox proportional hazards models, respectively. Results: Of 28 092 IBD patients, 60% had ulcerative colitis (UC) and 40% had Crohn's disease (CD). The median age was 43 (interquartile range, 30-58) years and 51.9% were female. Median time to diagnosis was 15.6 (interquartile range, 4.3-28.1) months. Factors associated with more than a year to diagnosis included female sex (adjusted risk ratio [aRR], 1.23; 95% CI, 1.21-1.26), older age (aRR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.01-1.10; comparing >70 years of age with 18-30 years of age), obesity (aRR, 1.03; 95% CI, 1.00-1.06), smoking (aRR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.02-1.08), CD compared with UC (aRR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.11-1.16), and a fecal calprotectin over 500 μg/g (aRR, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.82-0.95). The highest quartile of time to diagnosis compared with the lowest was associated with IBD-related emergency admissions (incidence rate ratio, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.01-1.11). Conclusion: Longer times to IBD diagnoses were associated with being female, advanced age, obesity, smoking, and Crohn's disease. More IBD-related emergency admissions were observed in patients with a prolonged time to diagnosis.
Citation
Umar N, Harvey P, Adderley NJ, Haroon S, Trudgill N. The Time to Inflammatory Bowel Disease Diagnosis for Patients Presenting with Abdominal Symptoms in Primary Care and its Association with Emergency Hospital Admissions and Surgery: A Retrospective Cohort Study. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2024 Apr 2:izae057. doi: 10.1093/ibd/izae057
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Article