(HealthDay)—Older age is associated with an increased risk for bacteremia in hospitalized patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), according to a study published in the March issue of the United European Gastroenterology Journal.

Idan Goren, M.D., from the Rabin Medical Center in Petah Tikva, Israel, and colleagues used data from 5,522 hospitalized patients with IBD (aged 16 to 80 years) from 2008 to 2017 to identify the rate of bacteremia and associated risk factors.

The researchers found that only 1.3 percent of admitted patients with IBD had bacteremia; of these, 39 had Crohn disease, 25 had ulcerative colitis, and nine had unclassified IBD. Escherichia coli was the most common pathogen (19 of 73 patients). The 30-day mortality rate was 13.7 percent for patients with bacteremia. An increased risk for bacteremia was seen with longer hospitalizations (mean length of stay, 21.6 versus 6.4 days) and older age (mean age, 47.5 versus 40.2 years). Treatment with anti-tumor necrosis factor α, purine analogs, steroids, or amino salicylates was not associated with an increased risk for bacteremia. Risk was highest among patients aged ≥65 years (relative risk, 2.84) versus patients <65 years.

"In conclusion, based on a large-scale cohort, bacteremia in hospitalized patients with IBD is a rare event but carries a high mortality rate," the authors write. "IBD-related medications are not associated with an increased risk of bacteremia in such patients, whereas age over 65 years is a risk factor."

More information: Abstract/Full Text

Copyright © 2020 HealthDay. All rights reserved.