Nadira MUSABBIR, Fahmida BEGUM, Wahiduzzaman MAZUMDER
Turkish Archives of Pediatrics - 2026;61(6):502-507
Objective: This study aimed to analyze the clinical, laboratory, endoscopic, and histological features of children with intestinal tuberculosis (ITB) and Crohn's disease (CD). Materials and Methods: This single-center retrospective study was done among children with ITB and CD between January 2021 and December 2023. Their baseline demographics, clinical, laboratory, endoscopic, and histological findings were compared. Results: This study included 28 ITB and 21 CD patients. The prevalence of fever (57.1% vs. 14.3%; P = .003), subacute intestinal obstruction (21.4% vs. 0%; P = .031), and positive contact history (25% vs. 0%; P = .015) was more common in ITB patients, whereas nocturnal stooling (33.3% vs. 0%; P = .001), growth failure (66.7% vs. 35.7%; P = .032), extraintestinal manifestation (28.6% vs.3.6%; P = .033), perianal involvement (33.3% vs. 7.1%; P = .028) predominated in CD patients with longer disease duration (7.3 +/- 3.3 months vs. 5.1+/- 4.02 months; P = .003). Higher mean fecal calprotectin level (1145.45 +/- 660.45 vs. 566.22 +/- 299.18 ug/g; P = .002), left-sided colonic involvement with linear ulcer (42.9% vs. 7.1%; P = .005), aphthous ulcer (38.1% vs. 7.1%; P = .012), skip lesion (28.6% vs. 0%; P = .004), cobble-stoning (19% vs. 0%; P = .028), perianal lesion (33.3% vs. 7.1%; P = .028), and focally enhanced colitis (47.6% vs. 0%; P = .000) were more common in CD patients than ITB patients. Conclusion: A combination of clinical features, laboratory tests, and endoscopic evaluation is needed to accurately distinguish CD from ITB in children.
