Abstract

OTERO REGINO, William; GONZALEZ, Angélica  and  GOMEZ ZULETA, Martín. Prevalence of different types of colitis among the elderly. Rev Col Gastroenterol [online]. 2009, vol.24, n.3, pp.272-278. ISSN 0120-9957.

Introduction: Colitis is an inflammatory process of the colon with diverse etiologies, although clinical conditions and endoscopic examinations look similar. The attending physician should determine if the condition is acute (less than four weeks duration), or chronic (more than four weeks duration). The most frequent cause of acute bloody diarrhea in adults is infection, although in adults over 65 years of age causes include ischemic colitis and, upon rare occasions, inflammatory intestinal disease. Information is lacking on colitis among the population of Colombia. Objectives: determine the prevalence, causes and localities of colitis among older adults. Materials and methods: Observational study of older adult patients who have been diagnosed as having colitis through colonoscopies, and have had these diagnoses confirmed histological and clinically during the period between March, 2002 and December, 2006. Results: The results of 2244 colonoscopies were reviewed. Of 321 older adults, 49 had been diagnosed with colitis and had had these diagnoses confirmed histologically and clinically. The principal causes included: ischemia, 30%; infections, 20% (40% Clostridium difficile); ulcerative colitis, 18%; post radiation therapy, 18%; others including neoplasias and Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) 14%. 23% of these cases were on the right side. Conclusion: The prevalence of colitis in older adults who underwent colonoscopies was 15%. Principal causes were: ischemia, 30%; infections, 20% (40% Clostridium difficile); ulcerative colitis, 18%; and post radiation therapy ischemia. Complete colonoscopies are indicated for all older adults with acute colitis.

Keywords : Colitis; older adult; ischemic colitis; ulcerative colitis; colonoscopy.

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