Nutritional concerns in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease patients.

In approximately one-fourth of patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), disease onset occurs during childhood and adolescence. In addition to gastrointestinal and extraintestinal symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), children with these conditions often experience one or more nutritional complications of their disease including growth failure, delayed puberty, osteoporosis, anemia, and micronutrient deficiencies. This article provides an overview of the epidemiology, pathophysiology, evaluation, and management of selected nutritional complications in pediatric IBD.