Rising Incidence of Childhood Intussusception in Ontario: A Population-Based Study From 1997-2016.

BACKGROUND: Intussusception is the most common cause of bowel obstruction in children aged 3 months to 6 years of age. We sought to describe patterns of incident childhood intussusception. METHODS: A retrospective longitudinal cohort study utilizing population-based health administrative data and a validated case definition was used to identify patients <18 years of age treated for intussusception between January 1, 1997 and December 31, 2016 in Ontario, Canada. Descriptive statistics, graphical analyses, and a Poisson regression model were performed for trend analysis. RESULTS: The overall incidence of intussusception in Ontario children (<18 years) was 3.3 cases/100,000 child years (cyrs), 95% CI [3.2.3.5]. The overall incidence increased from .9 cases/100,000 cyrs to 2.3 cases/100,000 cyrs. The highest incidence was in children aged 6-12 months at 28.9 cases/100,000 cyrs, 95% CI [26.2.31.9]. Incidence increased in all age-groups between 6 months and 5 years (at a rate of 5% to 16% per year; all P < .05). Month of year did not predict intussusception counts in a log-linear Poisson models, nor did rotavirus immunization implementation in 2011. There was a 3-fold variability across geographic areas in the province. There was a high rate of readmission for recurrence within 1 year (10.7%). CONCLUSION: The incidence of intussusception more than doubled in Ontario from 1997 to 2016. The incidence increased for children aged between 6 months and 5 years at a rate of 5-16% per year, suggesting that an increased rate of idiopathic intussusception is responsible for the increase in the province.

Diagnosis and treatment of childhood intussusception from 1997 to 2016: A population-based study.

OBJECTIVES: Describe changes in the diagnostic approach and treatment for pediatric intussusception over two decades. STUDY DESIGN: Administrative universal healthcare data were used to conduct a population-based cohort study of intussusception between January 1997 and December 2016 in Ontario, Canada. A validated case definition was used to identify all patients (<18 years) treated for intussusception in the province at community or tertiary care centers. Treatment modality was determined using physician billing data and databases linked at ICES; it was categorized as nonoperative alone, surgical alone, or failed nonoperative. Descriptive statistics, Cochrane-Armitage for trend analyses, and graphical and multinomial logistic regression were performed. RESULTS: Over 20 years, 1895 pediatric patients were treated for intussusception. Pretreatment imaging use rose from 57.5% to 99.3%. Nonoperative management increased from 23.4% to 75.2%. However, 43% of children who presented to a community hospital underwent immediate surgical management, compared with just 11% of children at tertiary centers (RR 0.39, 95% CI: 0.25-0.62). Among children who underwent surgery, there was an increase in bowel resection over time (41.7% to 57.6%). CONCLUSIONS: Over the 20 year period of study, pretreatment imaging became universal, and management shifted from predominantly surgical to nonoperative reduction in Ontario. The rate of surgical intervention remains higher in community versus tertiary centers. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Treatment study, III.