{
  "abstract": "Eosinophilic Oesophagitis (EoE), a chronic inflammatory disease of the oesophagus, 1 is rising in the paediatric population.2 There is increasing knowledge surrounding EoE and changing international guidelines.3 UK paediatric guidance however, has only recently been published.2 This study is the first in Wales to define paediatric EoE epidemiology and evaluate current management.All paediatric patients with EoE seen in a tertiary centre between January 2020- June 2025 were included. Patients were identified from a specific clinical code.Data was retrospectively collected from electronic patient records and recorded and analysed in Excel. Prevalence (using 2024 dataset) and incidence data was calculated using published population size data by year from StatsWales.4Patients diagnosed with EoE had clinical symptoms and a post-endoscopy histology report of >15 eosinophils/hpf. Patients with a high clinical suspicion of EoE and a borderline oesophageal mucosal eosinophilia were included if they were subsequently clinically diagnosed. Atopy refers to patients with a history of asthma, eczema or rhino-conjunctivitis. Transitioned patients refer to those who are ≥16 years old and have been referred to adult gastroenterologists.92 patients were seen between 2020-2025 and were diagnosed over a 15-year period, between November 2010-May 2025. 78% (n=72) were male, mean age at diagnosis was 10 years old (range 1-16 years old). 51% (n=47) had an atopic history.Local prevalence is 9.57 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.4 Annual incidence data are shown in table 1; population estimates were obtained from StatsWales.4From the date of referral to diagnostic endoscopy, the mean number of weeks was 9.4 (range 0-60 weeks). 68% (n=63) diagnostic endoscopies took 6 biopsies.Dysphagia was the prevailing (n=65) presenting complaint, then food bolus obstruction (n=43) and vomiting (n=33). 7% (n=6) of patients had stricturing disease, 3 were treated with endoscopic dilatation.Within 3 months of diagnosis, 50% of (n=46) patients were taking a proton pump inhibitor (PPI), 59% (n=54) were taking swallowed topical steroids (STS), 27% (n=25) took both. 9% (n=8) of patients were treated with diet.67% (n=62) had ≥1 further endoscopy post-diagnosis, of these, 56% (n=35) had evidence of remission. 34% (n=12) of patients achieved remission on combination PPI and STS, 23% (n=8) on STS and 20% (n=7) on PPI.37 patients were transitioned to adult care, 73% (n=27) have been seen by adult services since.This is the first time a Welsh paediatric EoE cohort has been described. Our data showed similarities to published data, for example, male predominance2 and dysphagia being the leading presenting complaint.5The incidence and prevalence of EoE in our cohort is significantly lower than published literature.6 Atopy rates in our cohort are also lower than observed elsewhere.7Further work is needed to raise awareness of EoE in Wales. The next step is to combine data with other Welsh centres to establish a pan-Wales pathway for EoE. Closer collaboration between different specialists is needed to identify children at risk of developing EoE.References Attwood SE, Smyrk TC, Demeester TR, Jones JB. Esophageal eosinophilia with dysphagia. A distinct clinicopathologic syndrome. Dig Dis Sci. 1993;38(1):109–16.Dhar A, Haboubi HN, Attwood SE, Auth MKH, Dunn JM, Sweis R, et al. British society of gastroenterology (BSG) and British society of paediatric gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition (BSPGHAN) joint consensus guidelines on the diagnosis and management of eosinophilic oesophagitis in children and adults. Gut 2022;71(8):1459–87.Rank MA, Sharaf RN, Furuta GT, Aceves SS, Greenhawt M, Spergel JM, et al. Technical review on the management of eosinophilic esophagitis: a report from the AGA institute and the joint task force on allergy-immunology practice parameters. Gastroenterology 2020;158(6):1789-810.e15.Welsh Government. Population estimates by local authority, year, sex and age [Internet]. StatsWales; 2025 [cited 2025 Oct 30]. Available from: https://stats.gov.wales/en-GB/82d9faea-b515-41cd-aedb-8f4594f66ce5Shillitoe B, Lee JC, Hussien M, Beintaris I, Stothard M, Johnston M, et al. Clinical spectrum of paediatric and adult eosinophilic oesophagitis in the North East of England from 2016 to 2019. Frontline Gastroenterology 2022;13(3):231–6.Navarro P, Arias Á, Arias-González L, Laserna-Mendieta EJ, Ruiz-Ponce M, Lucendo AJ. Systematic review with meta-analysis: the growing incidence and prevalence of eosinophilic oesophagitis in children and adults in population-based studies. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2019;49(9):1116–25.Ancellin M, Ricolfi-Waligova L, Clerc-Urmès I, Schweitzer C, Maudinas R, Bonneton M, et al. Management of eosinophilic esophagitis in children according to atopic status: a retrospective cohort in northeast of France. Archives de Pédiatrie. 2020;27(3):122––7.Abstract OC62 Table 1Showing Incidience of EoE in paediatric population by yearTotal Paediatric Population source: Welsh Government, StatsWales.4",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Cardiff University"
      ],
      "name": "Sara Lyden"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University Hospital of Wales"
      ],
      "name": "Joseph Chan"
    }
  ],
  "title": "OC62 Eosinophilic oesophagitis in a welsh centre: a first look at the epidemiology and clinical spectrum",
  "uid": "5902b320-ae57-5813-a820-e69d25a8269f"
}