Eosinophilic esophagitis is a disease in which eosinophils, a type of white blood cell, accumulate in the esophagus, causing difficulty in swallowing. Photo courtesy of Osaka Metropolitan University
In one of the first studies of its kind in Japan, researchers led by Osaka Metropolitan University determined the incidence and prevalence of eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), a chronic allergic disease.
EoE is caused by the accumulation of eosinophils, a type of white blood cell, in the esophagus, which can lead to inflammation and fibrosis of the tissue and cause swallowing difficulties. Cases of EoE have been increasing in North America and Western Europe since the 1990s, but little is known about the situation in Asia, including Japan.
Dr. Akinari Sawada, Associate Professor Fumio Tanaka, and Professor Yasuhiro Fujiwara of the Graduate School of Medicine at Osaka University analyzed an anonymous health insurance claims database of 15,200,895 individuals from January 2005 to September 2022. All of these individuals were company employees under the age of 75 and their dependents. The research team found 1,010 cases of EoE in the data.
According to the results published in the Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the researchers estimated the incidence of EoE to be 2.82 cases per 100,000 person-years and the prevalence to be 10.68 cases per 100,000 person-years in 2022. Compared to data from 2017, the incidence rate has increased threefold and the prevalence rate eightfold.
“In clinical practice, we expected that the number of EoE patients in Japan would increase. In this study, by using large-scale data, we were able to confirm that the incidence and prevalence of EoE are indeed increasing. We hope that this will lead to increased awareness of EoE in Japan,” said Dr. Sawada.
Further information: Akinari Sawada et al, Epidemiology and risk factors for eosinophilic esophagitis in Japan: a population-based study, Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.cgh.2024.04.035
Provided by: Osaka Metropolitan University
Source: Large-scale data analysis confirms rising incidence of chronic allergic disorders in Japan (July 10, 2024) Retrieved July 28, 2024 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-07-incidence-chronic-allergic-disorder-japan.html
This document is subject to copyright. It may not be reproduced without written permission, except for fair dealing for the purposes of personal study or research. The content is provided for informational purposes only.
