Gastrointestinal Epidemiology
Short description
Our research takes advantage of registers and large-scale cohorts of Nordic countries to examine risk factors for gastrointestinal diseases, foremost celiac disease and inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). We have also successfully studied the work-up and clinical follow-up of celiac disease and IBD.
GASTROINTESTINAL EPIDEMIOLOGY
Participants from the University of Gothenburg:
Karl Mårild, MD PhD Associate professor.
Tereza Lerchova, MD Postdoctoral Fellow.
Nalleli Vivanco Karlsson, PhD RD Postdoctoral Fellow (part-time, 20%).
PhD students: Annie Guo, Ida Sigvardsson, and Maria Ulnes.
Statisticians: Malin Östensson (on parental leave 2023-2024) and Björn Andersson (20%).
External participants:
Håkon S. Mundal (PhD student, University of Oslo) and Henrik Imberg (statistician, Statistiska Konsultgruppen).
CURRENT WORK
International and national collaboration
PREVENT-IBD: A Nordic birth cohort study on IBD
We coordinate the Nordic birth cohort study PREVENT-IBD, which examines early-life environmental risk factors for Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). After a rising incidence over the past decades, IBD now affects 0.5-1% of Western populations and is an emerging disease globally. There is ample evidence that the early-life environment contributes to IBD; however, such factors are poorly defined, partly related to a scarcity of sufficiently powered, prospective data from population-based cohorts.
We will address these challenges by analyzing birth cohort data on >170,000 children followed, from birth (1996-2009) throughout 2021, in the ABIS (Sweden), DNBC (Denmark), and MoBa (Norway) cohorts for development of IBD. If successful, knowledge gained from this unique data may be translated into preventive measures against IBD.
Collaborative patient-centered studies on inflammatory bowel disease
Within the pan-European Porto Group for pediatric IBD we are part of several observational studies on the care and follow-up of children with IBD. This research concerns a wide range of topics, from novel medical therapies for IBD, to IBD surgery and nutritional aspect of IBD care.
Regional patient-centered studies on celiac disease
Using regional clinical data and patient cohorts, we conduct studies to implement improved screening strategies for celiac disease and contribute to a better understanding of the follow-up care needed after its diagnosis.
Most people with celiac disease remain undiagnosed, and long-term follow-up care is often insufficient for those diagnosed. The research aims to design effective ways to identify celiac disease and provide a basis for evidence-based clinical follow-up with the hope that such efforts can lead to a better quality of life and health in people with celiac disease.
ESPRESSO registry-based research on IBD and celiac disease
Through close collaboration with partners at the Karolinska Institutet (PI=Jonas F Ludvigsson), we use the Swedish register and histopathology-based cohort study ESPRESSO to study the epidemiology, etiology and prognosis of celiac disease and IBD.
This research has led to an increased understanding of risk factors for celiac disease its association with other diseases (comorbidity), and influenced international guidelines for the disease.
Within the field of IBD, we have foremost examined the short- and long-term outcomes of the disease according to the degree of disease remission status; such knowledge is important as it informs patients and physicians on the prognosis of IBD in relation to remission status and therapy needed to achieve that goal.
