THURSDAY, Aug. 6 (HealthDay News) -- Patients with Salmonella or Campylobacter gastroenteritis have both a short- and long-term increased risk of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), according to a study published in the August issue of Gastroenterology.

Kim O. Gradel, Ph.D., of the Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark, and colleagues conducted a population-based cohort study comprising 13,148 patients with Salmonella or Campylobacter gastroenteritis and 26,216 unexposed age- and sex-matched controls. Individuals were followed for up to 15 years (mean, 7.5 years) to monitor the development of IBD.

After the first year of Salmonella or Campylobacter exposure, the researchers found there was a steep increase in the incidence of IBD for those individuals compared with the unexposed controls. After the 15-year follow-up, a first diagnosis of IBD was identified in a greater proportion of exposed versus control participants (1.2 versus 0.5 percent). The hazard ratio for developing IBD over the follow-up period was 2.9 for exposed individuals (1.9 if the first year following infection was excluded). The authors further note that there was no significant difference in the risk for developing IBD with regards to infection with either Salmonella or Campylobacter, and the incidence of either major form of IBD (Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis) was also similar.

"Our results have implications for the understanding of pathogenesis of IBD and for clinicians who should be aware of higher risk of IBD in Salmonella and Campylobacter gastroenteritis patients, both in the short- and long-term," Gradel and colleagues conclude.

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