Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a chronic functional gastrointestinal disorder affecting a large number of people worldwide. Based on the concept of central sensitization, we conducted a population-based cohort analysis to investigate the risk of IBS in children with atopic dermatitis (AD) as one of the first steps in the atopic march. From 2000 to 2007, 1 20 014 children with newly diagnosed AD and 1 20 014 randomly selected non-AD controls were included in the study. By the end of 2008, incidences of IBS in both cohorts and the AD cohort to non-AD cohort hazard ratios (HRs) and CIs were measured. The incidence of IBS during the study period was 1.45-fold greater (95% CI: 1.32 to 1.59) in the AD cohort than in the non-AD cohort (18.8 vs 12.9 per 10 000 person-years). The AD to non-AD HR of IBS was greater for girls (1.60, 95% CI: 1.39 to 1.85) and children≥12 years (1.59, 95% CI: 1.23 to 2.05). The HR of IBS in AD children increased from 0.84 (95% CI: 0.75 to 0.94) for those with ≤3 AD related visits to 16.7 (95% CI: 14.7 to 18.9) for those with >5 visits (P<0.0001, by the trend test). AD children had a greater risk of developing IBS. Further research is needed to clarify the role of allergy in the pathogenesis of IBS.
Irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia in patients with eating disorders ‐ a systematic review
