摘要
Objectives - Patients frequently ask questions about the lifetime prognosis of Crohn’ s disease. The aim of this study was to describe the outcomes of Cro hn’ s disease more than 20 years after diagnosis. Methods - Data from all pat ients with Crohn’ s disease whose diagnosis had been performed before 1st Janua ry 1978 were analyzed. All referred patients filled in a medical and health- re lated quality- of- life questionnaire. Results - Among 273 patients with Cro hn’ s disease diagnosed more than 20 years ago, 141 (52% ) patients answered o ur questionnaire, 45 (16% ) patients were alive but did not wish to answer our questionnaire, 51 (19% ) could not be traced and 36 (13% ) died before July 19 98. At the end of follow- up, 25.7 (20.0- 59.3) years after diagnosis, 24% h ad a relapse in the previous 12 months, and 48% and 28% had quiescent diseas e with and without treatment, respectively. These ratios were not different from those observed three years after Crohn’ s disease diagnosis. Sixteen patients died within 20 years after CD diagnosis, including 11 from CD- related causes. The risk of death estimated by Kaplan- Meier life- tables analysis was non- s ignificantly higher if death was related to CD. An ileal or colic adenocarcinoma was noted in 6 (3.4% ) patients. Conclusions - Crohn’ s disease activity do es not burn out with time, and roughly one- quarter of the patients had active disease 20 years after diagnosis.
Objectives - Patients frequently ask questions about the lifetime prognosis of Crohn' s disease. The aim of this study was to describe the outcomes of Cro hn' s disease more than 20 years after diagnosis. Methods - Data from all pat ients with Crohn' s disease whose diagnosis had been performed before 1st Janua ry 1978 were analyzed. All referred patients filled in a medical and health- re lated quality- of- life questionnaire. Results - Among 273 patients with Cro hn' s disease diagnosed more than 20 years ago, 141 (52% ) patients answered o ur questionnaire, 45 (16% ) patients were alive but did not wish to answer our questionnaire, 51 (19% ) could not be traced and 36 (13% ) died before July 19 98. At the end of follow- up, 25.7 (20.0- 59.3) years after diagnosis, 24% h ad a relapse in the previous 12 months, and 48% and 28% had quiescent diseas e with and without treatment, respectively. These ratios were not different from those observed three years after Crohn' s disease diagnosis. Sixteen patients died within 20 years after CD diagnosis, including 11 from CD- related causes. The risk of death estimated by Kaplan- Meier life- tables analysis was non- s ignificantly higher if death was related to CD. An ileal or colic adenocarcinoma was noted in 6 (3.4% ) patients. Conclusions - Crohn' s disease activity do es not burn out with time, and roughly one- quarter of the patients had active disease 20 years after diagnosis.
