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Antibiotic use linked to juvenile idiopathic arthritis
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Childhood antibiotic use may lead to cases of juvenile idiopathic arthritis by disturbing the human microbiome, according to a recent study in Pediatrics.
“Treatment with antibiotics was associated with the development of [juvenile idiopathic arthritis] in a large general pediatric population,” Daniel B. Horton, MD, MSCE, of the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and colleagues wrote. “These findings suggest a potential role for antibiotics in the pathogenesis of juvenile idiopathic arthritis, perhaps mediated through changes in the microbiome.”
To examine the association between juvenile idiopathic arthritis and antibiotic use, researchers matched patient records of children newly diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (n = 152) to 1,520 control subjects.
The study results showed that antibiotic exposure is related to an increased risk of developing juvenile idiopathic arthritis. Of the 152 patients studied, children exposed to more than one antibiotic treatment had an increased risk of developing juvenile idiopathic arthritis (OR = 2.1; 95% CI, 1.2-3.5).
The researchers also found that an increased exposure to antibiotics resulted in an increased risk of developing juvenile idiopathic arthritis. Children receiving five antibiotics showed an increased risk, a trend which was strongest within one year of diagnosis (OR = 3; 95% CI, 1.6-5.6). This trend was not affected by the number or types of infections being treated.
“If this association is causal, antibiotics could be considered a potentially modifiable risk factor for juvenile idiopathic arthritis, especially in light of the overprescribing of antibiotics to children, particularly for respiratory tract infections,” Horton and colleagues wrote. – by David Costill
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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