UEG: Antibiotic Use From Preadolescence Linked to IBS Risk at Age 24 Years

TUESDAY, Oct. 20, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Antibiotic use from preadolescence through early adulthood is associated with an increased risk for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), according to a study presented at UEG Week, the annual meeting of United European Gastroenterology, held from Oct. 17 to 20 in Barcelona, Spain.Jessica Sjölund, M.D., from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, and colleagues examined the association between antibiotic use from preadolescence through early adulthood and IBS at age 24 years using data from 2,853 participants in a Swedish birth cohort.The researchers found that the prevalence of IBS at 24 years was 10.0 percent. Compared with no use, any antibiotic use from preadolescence onward was associated with increased odds of IBS (adjusted odds ratio, 1.5). There was a dose-response relationship, with higher odds of IBS in association with increasing prescription frequency. Univariable models showed increased odds of IBS for tetracyclines, penicillins, quinolones, and other antibiotics (odds ratios, 1.5, 1.5, 1.9, and 1.8, respectively), as well as for three or more prescriptions of cephalosporins and sulfonamides/trimethoprim (odds ratios, 4.2 and 4.5, respectively). Only tetracyclines and cephalosporins remained significantly associated after adjustment for sex and socioeconomic status (adjusted odds ratios, 1.4 and 6.0, respectively). Any antibiotic use was associated with higher odds of IBS in women than in men in sex-stratified analyses, although the confidence intervals overlapped."These findings strengthen the epidemiological evidence for a potential link between antibiotic exposure and IBS and support further research into this relationship, although it does not establish causality," Sjölund said in a statement.More Information.Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

UEG: Antibiotic Use From Preadolescence Linked to IBS Risk at Age 24 Years

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