Background and aims: Childhood-onset ulcerative colitis [UC] requires total colectomy in one-quarter of patients at some point of their disease. The study objective was to evaluate long-term outcomes after proctocolectomy with ileoanal anastomosis [IAA] for paediatric UC.
Methods: Medical records of all children undergoing proctocolectomy with IAA for UC during 1985-2016 in Helsinki University Hospital were retrospectively assessed. Data on disease history, diagnostic and operative details, occurrence of surgical complications, functional outcome, postoperative diagnosis of Crohn's disease [CD] and pouch failure were collected. Risk factors for IAA failure were analysed with Cox regression.
Results: Of 87 patients, 85 [98%] had UC and 2 [2%] inflammatory bowel disease unclassified [IBD-U] preoperatively. Altogether 66% underwent two-stage and 34% underwent three-stage procedures. During 7.8 [4.1-14.5] years' follow-up, nine [10%] patients were diagnosed with postoperative CD. Postoperative leakages [n = 8, 9%] and strictures [n = 10, 11%] were equally common, whereas fistulas [78% vs 9%, p <0.001] and abscesses [56% vs 14%, p = 0.009] were more frequent among patients with later CD diagnosis. At latest follow-up, eight [9%] patients had been converted to a permanent ileostomy and others reported daytime stooling frequency of 5 [4-7] and 0.5 [0-1] at night. CD diagnosis (hazard ratio [HR] = 23.3, p = 0.005), postoperative abscesses [HR = 16.3, p = 0.013] and fistulas [HR = 20.9, p = 0.007] as well as three-stage surgery [p = 0.018] increased risk for ileostomy.
Conclusions: For paediatric UC, long-term surgical and functional outcomes after proctocolectomy with IAA are reassuring. Need for three-stage surgery and occurrence of postoperative fistulas and abscesses, but not leakages or strictures, associate with postoperative CD diagnosis and the risk for ileostomy.
Keywords: Colitis; Crohn’s disease; proctocolectomy; restorative; ulcerative.
Copyright © 2018 European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.