A Variant of COL3A1 (rs3134646) Is Associated With Risk of Developing Diverticulosis in White Men.

BACKGROUND: Colonic diverticulosis is one of the most common gastroenterological disorders. Although diverticulosis is typically benign, many individuals develop diverticulitis or other aspects of diverticular disease. Diverticulosis is thought to stem from a complex interaction of environmental, dietary, and genetic factors; however, the contributing genetic factors remain unknown. OBJECTIVE: The aim of our present study was to determine the role of genetic variants within genes encoding for collagens of the connective tissue in diverticulosis. DESIGN: This was a transsectional genetic association study. SETTINGS: This study was conducted at three tertiary referral centers in Germany and Lithuania. PATIENTS: Single-nucleotide polymorphisms in COL3A1 (rs3134646, rs1800255) and COL1A1 (rs1800012) were genotyped in 422 patients with diverticulosis and 285 controls of white descent by using TaqMan assays. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The association of colonoscopy-proven diverticulosis with genetic polymorphisms with herniations was assessed in multivariate models. RESULTS: The rs3134646, rs1800255, and rs1800012 variants were significantly associated with the risk of developing diverticulosis in the univariate model; however, these associations were not significant in the multivariate logistic regression analysis including additional nongenetic variables. When selectively analyzing sexes, the genotype AA (AA) in rs3134646 remained significantly associated with diverticulosis in men (OR, 1.82; 95% CI, 1.04-3.20; p = 0.04). LIMITATIONS: Because a candidate approach was used, additional relevant variants could be missed. Within our cohort of patients with diverticulosis, only a small proportion had diverticular disease and thus, we could not examine the variants in these subgroups. Functional studies, including the analysis of the involved collagens, are also warranted. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that a variant of COL3A1 (rs3134646) is associated with the risk of developing colonic diverticulosis in white men, whereas rs1800255 (COL3A1) and rs1800012 (COL1A1) were not associated with this condition after adjusting for confounding factors. Our data provide novel valuable insights in the genetic susceptibility to diverticulosis. See Video Abstract at http://links.lww.com/DCR/A504.

Higher Mortality in Surgically Managed Diverticulitis is Associated with Asian Ethnicity and Right-Sided Disease.

BACKGROUND: Although right-sided diverticulitis is perceived to have a higher incidence among Asians and infrequently requires surgical management in comparison with sigmoid diverticulitis, it is unknown whether differences in outcomes are due to ethnic disparity or disease pathophysiology. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the surgical outcomes for Asian and non-Asian patients with diverticulitis who underwent colectomy. DESIGN: Patients identifiable by ethnicity in the Nationwide Inpatient Sample with diverticulitis and colectomy between 2004 and 2010 were included. Univariate comparisons were made between Asian and non-Asian patients by using t tests for continuous variables and χ tests for categorical variables. Propensity score matching analysis was performed to compare Asian patients with otherwise similar non-Asian patients. PATIENTS: Included were 58,142 non-Asian and 335 Asian patients with diverticulitis who underwent a colectomy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcomes were in-hospital mortality, hospital length of stay, and total costs. RESULTS: Asian patients were younger (56.1 vs. 59.2 years, p < 0.0001), were more likely to undergo a right colectomy (22.7% vs. 4.1%, p < 0.0001), and were more likely to have emergent/urgent surgery than the non-Asian patients (67.1% vs. 49.8%, p < 0.0001). Without controlling for patient/disease factors, there were statistically significant differences in mortality (non-Asian 2.2% vs. Asian 4.2%; p = 0.014), length of stay (non-Asian 8.9 vs. Asian 9.8 days; p = 0.0166), and costs (non-Asian $18,783 vs. Asian $21,901; p = 0.001). Propensity score matching comparing 333 non-Asian patients with 333 similar Asian patients showed that, whereas differences in cost and length of stay became insignificant, the difference in mortality remained statistically significant. LIMITATIONS: The ethnicity variable was not uniformly collected by all states within the Nationwide Inpatient Sample database. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients undergoing a colectomy for diverticulitis, a higher mortality was observed in Asian patients and right-sided disease. Future longitudinal studies comparing the natural history and outcomes of management between right- and left-sided diverticulitis are necessary to investigate whether a true ethnic disparity exists.

Demographics and trends in the acute presentation of diverticular disease: a national study.

BACKGROUND: Diverticular disease (DD) is a major health problem in the Western world. The aim of this study was to describe demographics and trends in acute DD admissions in New Zealand. METHODS: Information pertaining to acute hospital admissions between January 2000 and June 2012 for a primary diagnosis of large bowel DD was retrieved from a national database. RESULTS: There were 25,167 admissions for acute DD. Mean age of presentation decreased from 65.9 years in 2000 to 64.1 years in 2012 (P < 0.001). Mean age was lower in men than women (61.4 versus 67.4 years, P < 0.001). Although men comprised 45.2% of the cohort they were over-represented in the 18-44 years stratum (68.6 versus 31.4%; P < 0.001). Europeans accounted for 84.8% of admissions and presented at an older age (65.8 years) than Maori (56.2 years), Pacific Islanders (58.4 years) or Asians (58.9 years) (P < 0.001). Acute DD admissions were higher in more deprived populations (P < 0.001). Mean length of hospital stay (LOS) reduced from 5.8 days in 2000 to 4.1 days in 2012 (P < 0.001). LOS increased with age (P < 0.001) and deprivation (P = 0.013), but did not differ between ethnicities (P = 0.088). Computed tomography scanning of acute admissions doubled from 2000 to 2012 (29.7-59.2%; P < 0.001) with a halving in the use of acute in-patient colonoscopy (26.1-13.2%; P < 0.001) and emergent surgery (14.8-7.2%; P < 0.001). Percutaneous drain use increased from 0.6% in 2000 to 1.1% in 2012 (P = 0.003). CONCLUSION: Acute DD is a source of considerable morbidity in New Zealand and there have been significant changes in its admission demographics and trends over the last decade.

The impact of ethnicity and obesity on the course of colonic diverticulitis.

BACKGROUND: Little research has been performed on the impact of race/ethnicity and obesity on the course of diverticulitis. PURPOSE: To determine whether patients of different racial/ethnic backgrounds and patients who are obese have disparate courses of disease with regard to complications, recurrence rates, and need for surgery. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective review of the charts of 347 patients with confirmed diverticulitis in 2 university teaching hospitals at Bronx, NY. RESULTS: African Americans were more likely [odds ratio (OR), 2.28, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.04-5.00, P = 0.04] and Hispanics were less likely than other racial/ethnic groups (OR, 0.47; 95% CI, 0.22-0.97; P = 0.04) to require surgery for recurrent diverticulitis after at least 1 medically managed hospital admission for diverticulitis. Caucasians were less likely than other racial/ethnic groups to suffer a recurrence of diverticulitis (OR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.27-0.86; P = 0.01). Obese patients [ body mass index (BMI) >30] were more likely than nonobese patients to experience a recurrent episode of diverticulitis (OR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.08-2.64; P = 0.02). The odds of requiring surgery on the initial presentation of diverticulitis were not significantly different among the various races/ethnicities nor was the likelihood of surgery influenced by BMI. Complication rates did not differ significantly when patients were stratified by age, sex, race, BMI, or number of prior episodes of diverticulitis. CONCLUSIONS: Surgery for diverticulitis after at least 1 medically managed hospital admission for diverticulitis is more frequently needed in African Americans and less frequently needed in Hispanics. Caucasians are less likely than other races/ethnicities to suffer a recurrence of diverticulitis. Finally, obesity is a risk factor for recurrent diverticulitis, but not for surgical therapy of diverticulitis.

Racial differences in short-term surgical outcomes following surgery for diverticulitis.

BACKGROUND: Diverticular disease ranks as one of the more common gastrointestinal disorders among westernized nations. Few studies have examined racial differences in the care and surgical outcomes of diverticulitis. The aim of this study was to determine if race is a predictor of peri-operative morbidity and mortality following surgery for diverticulitis. METHODS: The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (2005-2008) was queried with the primary dependent variables being 30-day morbidity and mortality. Differences in morbidity and mortality between races were compared using χ (2) and Student t tests. Logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios for morbidity and mortality. To determine if the effect of race is modified by insurance status and case complexity, additional models were developed across age subgroups (<65 vs ≥ 65) and levels of case complexity. RESULTS: We identified 4,709 white and 360 African American patients. Despite being younger (57.6 ± 0.74 vs 59 ± 0.2, p < 0.05), African Americans were more likely to present with hypertension, diabetes, renal failure, dependent functional status, American Society of Anesthesiology class ≥ 3 (all p < 0.0001) and were more likely to require urgent surgery (p < 0.05), intra-operative blood transfusions(p < 0.0001), and undergo open colectomy (p < 0.0001). On adjusted analysis, African American race emerged as an independent predictor of morbidity (p < 0.05) and mortality (p < 0.05), without differences across insurance categories and less complex procedures. African American race remained a strong predictor of morbidity in more complex procedures (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: African Americans undergoing surgery for diverticulitis are more likely to have associated co-morbidities, require urgent surgery, undergo open surgery, and are at increased risk of morbidity and mortality. These findings highlight a need to address the root cause for disparities in care and outcomes after surgery.

Effect of race and insurance status on presentation, treatment, and mortality in patients undergoing surgery for diverticulitis.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of race and insurance status on patient presentation, treatment, and mortality in individuals who underwent surgery for diverticulitis. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of the Nationwide Inpatient Sample file from 1999 to 2003. SETTING: A 20% representative sample of all hospitals in 37 states in the United States. PATIENTS: Patients admitted with a primary diagnosis of diverticulitis who subsequently underwent either colectomy and/or colostomy (n = 45,528). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Odds ratios (ORs) for association of race (black vs white) and insurance status (Medicaid or self-pay [inadequate insurance] vs other insurance) with (1) complicated presentation, (2) colostomy, and (3) in-hospital mortality. RESULTS: On multivariate analysis, black race was significantly associated with complicated presentation (OR, 1.16; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04-1.30) and mortality (OR, 1.41; 95% CI, 1.06-1.86) but not with receiving a colostomy. In contrast, insurance status was significantly associated with complicated presentation (OR, 1.21; 95% CI, 1.08-1.36), receiving a colostomy (OR, 2.10; 95% CI, 1.89-2.32), and mortality (OR, 2.64; 95% CI, 1.82-3.82). CONCLUSIONS: Black patients were no more likely than white patients to undergo colostomy; however, race was a significant variable on patient presentation. Therefore, racial differences in outcome can be attributed to differences in patient presentation and not to differences in treatment received. Lack of adequate health insurance is a more powerful predictor of disease severity, suboptimal surgical treatment, and mortality.