Table 2. Comparison of alarm symptoms and pre-endoscopic investigations between children with abnormal and normal endoscopy.
| Profiles and parameters of children | Normal endoscopy (82 cases) | Abnormal endoscopy (66 cases) | p-value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 38 (46.3) | 34 (51.5) | 0.531 | ||
| Age (mo) | 146.61±59.69/158 (117.0–191.0) | 124.89±64.69/138 (64.8–180.8) | 0.044* | ||
| BMI (kg/m2) | 19.55±6.01/18.36 (14.9–21.2) | 17.22±3.84/16.77 (14.4–18.8) | 0.013* | ||
| Duration of admission (d) | 25.78±139.94/2.09 (1.1–5.8) | 32.29±155.06/5.37 (2.0–16.0) | 0.004* | ||
| Duration of symptoms (d) | 182.44±254.67/76.5 (28.0–257.3) | 115.53±254.58/29 (4.3–113.0) | 0.003* | ||
| Co-morbidities | 28 (34.1) | 29 (43.9) | 0.224 | ||
| Alarm symptoms | |||||
| Presence of alarm symptoms | 75 (91.4) | 66 (100.0) | 0.017* | ||
| Hematemesis/hematochezia | 10 (12.2) | 40 (60.6) | <0.001* | ||
| Bowel habit change | 24 (29.3) | 14 (21.2) | 0.265 | ||
| Dysphagia/recurrent vomiting | 19 (23.2) | 18 (27.3) | 0.567 | ||
| Persistent diarrhea | 18 (22.0) | 15 (22.7) | 0.910 | ||
| Anemia | 4 (4.9) | 24 (36.4) | <0.001* | ||
| Weight loss/failure to thrive | 10 (12.2) | 14 (21.2) | 0.139 | ||
| Anorexia | 6 (7.3) | 8 (12.1) | 0.321 | ||
| Prolonged fever | 1 (1.2) | 2 (3.0) | NA | ||
| Extra-GI manifestation of IBD | 0 (0.0) | 3 (4.5) | NA | ||
| Chronic abdominal pain | 59 (72.0) | 25 (37.9) | <0.001* | ||
| Abdominal pain away from the umbilicus | 28 (47.5) | 16 (64.0) | 0.165 | ||
| Nighttime abdominal pain | 14 (23.7) | 4 (16.0) | 0.429 | ||
| Pre-endoscopic Investigations | |||||
| Hemoglobin (g/dL) | 12.24±2.17/12.8 (11.0–13.5) | 11.06±2.72/11.35 (9.3–12.9) | 0.005* | ||
| Low hemoglobin level | 30 (36.5) | 40 (60.6) | 0.005* | ||
| WBC (cell/cu.mm) | 9,001.5±4,434.61/8,000 (6,275–9,900) | 9,894.7±4,110.25/8,900 (6,600–12,550) | 0.087 | ||
| PMN (%) | 57.23±16.75/57.5 (47.0–66.1) | 62.85±18.49/64.6 (48.0–75.8) | 0.052 | ||
| Eosinophils (%) | 2.61±2.94/2 (1.0–3.4) | 1.76±2.28/1 (0.0–2.0) | 0.027* | ||
| Absolute eosinophil count (cell/cu.mm) | 228.96±283.12/126.6 (46.3–276.8) | 183.16±350.91/98.85 (0.0–198.0) | 0.119 | ||
| Platelet count (cell/cu.mm) | 338,612.5±137,073.25/315,000 (260,250–374,250) | 325,075.76±180,139.29/293,500 (221,750–409,250) | 0.294 | ||
| ESR (mm/hr) | 20.00±18.56/12 (9.0–24.0) | 27.80±17.54/26 (16.8–38.0) | 0.097 | ||
| Rising ESR (>20 mm/hr) | 7 from 21 (33.3) | 13 from 20 (65.0) | 0.043* | ||
| CRP (mg/L) | 6.16±10.16/1.17 (0.8–4.8) | 24.85±25.41/22.98 (2.9–44.2) | 0.099 | ||
| Rising CRP (>3 mg/L) | 4 from 14 (28.6) | 4 from 6 (66.7) | 0.111 | ||
| Albumin (g/dL) | 4.34±0.57/4.5 (4.2–4.7) | 3.85±0.87/4 (3.4–4.6) | <0.001* | ||
| Hypoalbuminemia (<3.5 g/dL) | 7 from 82 (9.7) | 16 from 64 (25.0) | 0.018* | ||
| Amylase (U/L) | 25.21±14.99/22 (20.0–27.8) | 40.96±52.02/25 (23.0–34.0) | 0.052 | ||
| Lipase (U/L) | 26.80±16.13/21.55 (17.0–31.3) | 65.44±119.55/41 (20.9–50.0) | 0.010* | ||
| BUN/Cr ratio | 21.24±24.82/17.53 (11.6–21.0) | 36.28±31.93/25.67 (17.5–40.5) | <0.001* | ||
Values are presented as number (%), mean±standard deviation, or median (interquartile range).
BMI: body mass index, GI: gastrointestinal, IBD: inflammatory bowel disease, WBC: white blood cell, PMN: polymorphonuclear cells, ESR: erythrocyte sedimentation rate, CRP: C-reactive protein, BUN: blood urea nitrogen, Cr: creatinine, NA: not available.
*Significance at p<0.05.