Objective:

To characterize the demographic and clinical features of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) among both adult and pediatric patients and assess overall treatment patterns.

Approach:

• Study Design: A descriptive study using a national healthcare database to analyze patients newly diagnosed with IBD between January 2014 and December 2022.
• Patient Classification: Patients were classified into ulcerative colitis (UC) or Crohn's disease (CD) and further stratified by age (pediatrics: <19 years, adults: ≥19 years).
• Data Source: Utilized the National Health Insurance Service–National Health Information Database (NHIS-NHID) for comprehensive healthcare utilization records.

Key Findings:

• 60,181 individuals identified as IBD patients with related medication use.
• CD predominated in the pediatric population (71.6% in pediatrics vs. 24.8% in adults).
• Pediatric-onset IBD had a high burden of comorbidities (41.7% in UC and 46.4% in CD with ≥2 comorbidities).
• Pediatric patients initiated advanced therapies earlier than adults (median time to treatment initiation significantly shorter).
• Cumulative persistence at 12 months for advanced agents in adults ranged from 76.9% to 88.5%.

Interpretation:

Limitations:

• Study focused on a national cohort, which may limit generalizability to other populations.
• Only TNF-alpha inhibitors are currently approved for pediatric use, restricting treatment options.

Conclusion:

This study provides a comprehensive evaluation of patient characteristics and treatment patterns in IBD patients in South Korea.