PO9 - Characteristics of comorbid sarcoidosis and inflammatory bowel disease in a sample of US Black women
Virginia Cafferky (United States)1 2 3; Adjoa Anyane-Yeboa (United States)4 5; Cordelia W. Russell (United States)1; Hamed Khalili (United States)4 5; Yvette C. Cozier (United States)1 2;
1 - Slone Epidemiology Center at Boston University, Boston, MA, USA; 2 - Department of Epidemiology, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; 3 - Center for Trauma & Mental Health, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; 4 - Division of Gastroenterology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; 5 - Clinical, Translational, Epidemiology Unit (CTEU), The Mongan Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA;
Keywords: Sarcoidosis; Inflammatory bowel disease; Comorbidity;
Select the theme: Special Topics in Extrathoracic Sarcoidosis
Type: Original Papers
Presentation: Poster Presentation

Introduction: Evidence suggests sarcoidosis shares a pathobiological mechanism with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), particularly Crohn’s disease which is characterized by granulomatous inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract. However, data characterizing the co-occurrence of these conditions are limited. 

Objectives: To estimate the prevalence of comorbid IBD among a sample of patients with sarcoidosis, and to describe the clinical characteristics of these patients with respect to IBD status. 

Materials and Methods: The Black Women’s Health Study (BWHS) is a prospective cohort of United States Black women aged 21-69 years at enrollment in1995 and followed biennially. Our analytic sample consisted of BWHS participants with sarcoidosis diagnoses reported between 1995-2021, who also completed a supplemental questionnaire in 2023 providing data regarding sarcoidosis symptoms, disease burden (e.g., fatigue), and comorbid diagnoses including IBD (Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis). Bivariate analyses assessed the prevalence of comorbid IBD among sarcoidosis cases, and log binomial models estimated the crude and age-adjusted risk ratios for specific burden-related indicators. 

Results: Of the 408 participants with sarcoidosis, 11 (2.70%) reported having also received a diagnosis for IBD. Comorbid IBD was associated with an increased risk of reporting problems with sleep: age-adjusted RR (aRR) = 2.09; 95% CI 1.18, 3.62; and fatigue (aRR = 1.19; 95% CI 0.98, 1.46). Participants with comorbid IBD were also less likely to report fair/poor (versus excellent/very good/good) overall health (aRR = 0.54; 95% CI 0.08, 3.49), but more likely to report poor or fair mental health (aRR = 1.76; 95% CI 0.49, 6.27), although estimates were imprecise.  

Conclusions: While representing a small subset of patients in our cohort, sarcoidosis and IBD can co-occur and patient characteristics may differ with respect to comorbid status. Future work is needed to better understand the shared mechanism(s) of these diseases and potential implications for disease burden and progression.