Statistics
~ As many as 4 million people worldwide suffer from a form IBD.
~ It is estimated that as many as 1.4 million Americans have IBD -- with that number evenly split between Crohn's disease and Ulcerative Colitis.
~ Males and females appear to be affected equally.
~ Crohn's disease can also occur in people who are 70 or older and in young children as well.
~ Ten (10) percent of those affected -- or an estimated 140,000 -- are youngsters under the age of 18.
~ The cost of lost productivity to U.S. businesses due to IBD is estimated to be as much as $.8 billion a year.
~ From 1991 to 2002, the incidence rate has doubled in children from 1.1/100,000/year to 2.4/100,000/year. This trend was valid for Crohn's Disease but not for Ulcerative Colitis.
~ In children, whites had higher incidence rate of IBD than African Americans or Hispanics: 4.15/100,000/year versus 1.83/100,000/year, and 0.61/100,000/year, respectively. African Americans children were predominantly diagnosed with CD.