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Increasingly, researchers are thinking that intestinal flora might play a role in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). A previous study from the U.K. showed a significant association between antibiotic use — which is known to alter gut flora — and diagnosis of Crohn disease 2 to 5 years later (Gut 2004; 53:246).
To investigate this issue further, researchers conducted a nested, case-control study using epidemiology and drug databases in Manitoba, Canada. A total of 2234 patients with new diagnoses of IBD between 2001 and 2008 were matched by age, sex, and region of residence with 22,346 controls who were treated for other conditions. Age at diagnosis for controls was defined as the age at which IBD was diagnosed in the match…