Researchers identified 9,400 patients with IBD through the Swedish patient register and compared their mortality rates to other children.
Here’s what they found:
1. Children who developed IBD before they turned 18 had a mortality rate three to five times higher than disease-free children.
2. Researchers believe the increased rate translates to a 2.2-year reduction in life expectancy.
3. Cancer was the most common ailment, but fatalities due to IBD accounted for the largest increase in mortality.
Ola Olén, a consultant and researcher at Karolinska Institutet’s Department of Medicine in Solna, Sweden, said, “Most young people with IBD do not die earlier than their peers, but a few individuals with a severe case of IBD and serious complications such as cancer greatly elevate the relative risk.”
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