Manninen P, Karvonen AL, Huhtala H et al. Scand J Gastroenterol 2010;45:1063–7.
There is evidence that the incidence of IBD is increasing, but data are inconsistent. In this study, a population-based registry in the Tampere region of Finland was utilized in order to obtain accurate information on the prevalence of IBD in the region. The investigators found that, like elsewhere in Scandinavia, the rate of ulcerative colitis far exceeds that of other European countries, and also that the rate of Crohn’s disease doubled from 1986 to 1999.
In the Tampere region of Finland in 1986–1999, a prospective population registry of inhabitants was assembled, comprising approximately 9% of the Finnish population. All case diagnoses were verified by chart review. In 1986 and 1999, the disease prevalence was 119 per 100 000 and 291 per 100 000 inhabitants, respectively, for UC; 40 per 100 000 and 124 per 100 000 inhabitants, respectively, for Crohn’s disease; and nine per 100 000 and 27 per 100 000 inhabitants, respectively, for IBD-type unclassified. The annual incidence of UC increased from 13.3 to 19.6 per 100 000 inhabitants during the study period while the annual incidence of Crohn’s disease increased from 5.0 to 9.4 per 100 000 inhabitants. The sex distribution was similar for both diseases. The overall mean time to diagnosis from symptom-onset was 1.7 years.