Risk for Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: Do Antibiotics Play a Role?

The intestinal microbiome is increasingly implicated in influencing intraintestinal and extraintestinal diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, diabetes, and even some psychiatric diseases. Previous studies have suggested that disruption of the microbiome may be associated with the development of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).

To assess whether antibiotic exposure is a risk factor for development of JIA, researchers conducted a case-control study using an electronic medical record database from more than 550 general practices in the U.K. Each of 152 children ages 1 to 15 years with newly diagnosed JIA was matched by age and sex with 10 healthy controls. The analysis controlled for the number and types of infections as well as o…