METHODS: In total, 1,764 patients (1,130 with ulcerative colitis [UC] and 634 with Crohn's disease [CD]) were recruited from 10 tertiary centers in Asia. The medical records of IBD patients were retrospectively reviewed for the presence, clinical characteristics, chronological order, and therapeutic management of EIMs.
RESULTS: EIMs were reported in 199 (11.3%) patients, of which 17 (1.0%) patients had multiple EIMs. EIMs were more prevalent in CD patients (P = 0.02). Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that female sex (odds ratio [OR] 2.02, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.15-3.55), stricture (OR 2.49, 95% CI 1.41-4.39) and female sex (OR 2.57, 95% CI 1.52-4.34), extensive colitis (OR 2.63, 95% CI 1.57-4.41) were associated with EIMs in CD and UC patients respectively. EIMs appeared in 8% of patients before IBD diagnosis; 95% of cases with EIM could be managed via first-line therapy.
CONCLUSION: EIM prevalence is lower among Asian IBD patients than among patients from Western countries; however, the risk factors for EIM were similar between both populations.