Inflammatory bowel disease on the rise, conclave today

Chennai: There has been a significant increase in inflammatory bowel disease – long-standing (chronic) inflammation of tissues in the digestive tract – across the country, particularly among young South Indians, the Tamil Nadu Gastroenterological Trust has said.

While at least two studies in North India showed a type of inflammatory bowel disease called ulcerative colitis was more common, a study of more than 1,200 patients from across 32 TN hospitals showed Crohn’s disease was common among South Indians. Nearly 50 per cent of patients with inflammatory bowel disease were diagnosed with Crohn’s disease while around 43 per cent were diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. In about 4 per cent, diagnosis was “unclassified”.

Apollo Hospitals and Tamil Nadu Gastroenterologist Trust will hold a conclave on Sunday to educate doctors, patients and health care professionals on the increasing incidence of the disease, discuss challenges in management and advances in treatment, said Dr K R Palaniswamy, Senior Consultant Gastroenterologist at Apollo Hospitals.