[Epidemiological characteristics of intussusception in children aged 0-3 years in Jiangsu Province from 2018 to 2023].

Abstract

Objective: To describe the incidence density of intussusception and its distribution characteristics across different ages, genders, and time periods among resident children aged 0-3 years in Jiangsu Province from 2018 to 2023, providing a scientific basis for health administrative departments in the region to formulate prevention and control strategies and measures for intussusception in children aged 0-3 years.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using data from the Jiangsu Regional Health Information Platform (RHIP). Resident children aged 0-3 years born between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2023, were included. Suspected cases were identified by retrieving the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10 revision (ICD-10) code "K56.1" and semantically related keywords for "intussusception" from the original text using a regular expression matching algorithm. An incident case was defined as the first occurrence of the disease during the study period. Follow-up person-years were calculated using the exact person-time method. The Poisson distribution was applied to estimate the overall and subgroup incidence densities and their 95% confidence intervals (CI). Poisson regression models were constructed to calculate incidence rate ratio (IRR) and examine the effects of age (in months) and seasonal differences on incidence density.

Results: A birth cohort comprising 2 252 691 children aged 0-3 years was established, accumulating a total follow-up of 5 316 389.55 person-years. During the study period, 2 650 incident cases of intussusception were identified, including 1 600 boys (60.4%) and 1 050 girls (39.6%). The overall incidence density was 49.8 (95%CI: 47.9-51.7) per 100 000 person-years. The incidence density was 57.8 (95%CI: 54.9-60.6) per 100 000 person-years for boys and 41.2 (95%CI: 38.7-43.7) per 100 000 person-years for girls, with a statistically significant difference between the sexes. Seasonal variations were observed, with peaks occurring in summer and winter. The incidence density exhibited a unimodal pattern, peaking at 8 months (98.5 per 100 000 person-years). The median age of onset was 19.2 months [interquartile range (IQR): 11.4-26.6 months].

Conclusion: This large retrospective cohort study based on the Jiangsu RHIP clarified the epidemiological characteristics of intussusception among local children aged 0-3 years from 2018 to 2023. Boys and children aged 8 months to 3 years were identified as high-risk populations for intussusception, with peak incidence occurring in summer and winter. These findings provide evidence-based support for health authorities to formulate targeted strategies for early surveillance, prevention, and healthcare resource allocation.