Mortality Higher in Children with Celiac Disease

THURSDAY, April 26 (HealthDay News) -- Children diagnosed with celiac disease have a more than threefold higher risk of death than those diagnosed as adults due to causes including accidents, cancer and cerebrovascular disease, according to a report in the April issue of the American Journal of Gastroenterology.

Joe West, Ph.D., and colleagues from the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom, compared the long-term mortality of 285 children and 340 adults diagnosed with celiac disease.

The researchers found that all-cause mortality five years after diagnosis was considerably higher in those diagnosed during childhood (standardized mortality ratio 3.32) than in those diagnosed as adults (SMR, 1.38). The higher mortality in children could be traced to a higher risk of accidents, suicide and violence; cancer; and cerebrovascular disease.

"Children diagnosed with celiac disease had a threefold increased risk of long-term mortality," West and colleagues conclude. "The increased mortality in children from external causes may reflect behavioral change associated with coping with a chronic disease and its treatment."

Abstract
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