(ANSA) – ROME, MAY 19 – Abdominal pain, exhaustion and bleeding: these are the most common ailments among those suffering from inflammatory bowel disease, a condition that affects 250,000 Italians, especially young people, so much so that one diagnosis out of 4 concerns a child. And for 7 out of 10 patients who suffer from it, it becomes difficult to attend school or work.
This is the picture that emerges from the survey ‘Better: Welfare, Occupational, Legal and Social Needs’ for the treatment of chronic inflammatory bowel diseases, presented by Amici Italia on the occasion of World Day.
“Diseases such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis present with periods of exacerbation alternating with phases of remission and of which the cause is unknown – explains Valentina Ferracuti, president of Amici Italia -. The age at which they most frequently arise ranges from 20 to 40 years, but the onset can occur at any age, even in children of one or two years “.
“The incidence of these pathologies is clearly increasing – continues Claudio Romano, president of the Italian Society of Pediatric Gastroenterology -. From a geographical point of view, industrialized countries are more affected”. The hypothesis, adds Flavio Caprioli, secretary of the Italian Group for the Study of Inflammatory Bowel Disease, “is that at the origin of the disease there is an abnormal immunological reaction by the intestine against antigens. This can happen for a ‘altered interaction between unidentified genetic and environmental factors’.
The survey, presented to the Ministry of Health, involved 1,350 patients. It emerged, explains Salvo Leone, director of Amici Italia, “that for almost 72% the disease affects the ability to work and 80% of those who attend school or university are forced to be absent several times”.
Furthermore, almost 30% find it difficult to be visited when they have an emergency. 17% have difficulty scheduling a follow-up due to waiting times. “Among the difficulties there is also that of diagnosis and access to therapies. For this reason, it is – he concludes – important to contact experts from centers of excellence”. (HANDLE).
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