Objectives: Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are chronic diseases which negatively affect the schooling of children. The aim is to analyze school absenteeism and its causes in children followed for IBD.
Methods: A prospective multicenter study of IBD patients aged from 5 to 18 years old, from September 2016 to June 2017. Data on absenteeism and its causes were collected via a monthly questionnaire completed by patients or their family by mail. The results were compared with existing data supplied by the school authorities (497 students without IBD divided by class).
Results: A total of 106 patients (62 boys), median age of 14 (5-18), were included. The global response rate was 83.1%. The patients with IBD were absent an average of 4.8% ± 5.5% of school days during the school year, against 3.2% ± 1.6% for non IBD group (P = 0.034). Digestive disorders accounted for 34% of the causes of absenteeism. Approximately 27% of the absences were due to scheduled events (hospitalizations, endoscopy, or consultations). By excluding the absences for scheduled care, the rate of school absenteeism of patients with IBD is significantly lower than that of non-IBD group.
Conclusion: Children with IBD are more frequently absent from school than non-IBD group. The main cause of school absenteeism appears to be associated with the disease itself. The share of scheduled absenteeism is quite large. The organization and scheduling of the patients' care path must be a priority to maximally limit the negative impact of their disease on the patients' schooling.