Association between the early diagnosis of Crohn’s disease (CD) and the development of its clinical complications among adults at King Abdulaziz University Hospital.

Background: Despite a steady increase in cases, concerns persist about how early diagnosis affects Crohn’s disease (CD) progression. Objectives: To assess the association between early (CD) diagnosis and clinical complications among adults. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on 149 patients aged 18 years or older who were admitted anddiagnosed with CD between 2000 and 2022. Data on demographics, admission portal, family history, risk factors, past medical history, clinical presentations, complications, recurrence, disease-modifying agents, and laboratory investigations were collected. Diagnostic delay was defined as the time from diagnosis to the 75th percentile. Results: The mean age was 35.85 ± 12.54 years, with a mean disease duration of 7.72 ± 4.02 years; the average time from symptom onset to diagnosis was 1.93 ± 3.2 years, and from the diagnosis to complications was 2.2 ± 3.0 years. Males comprised 57% of patients, and 80.5% were S nationals. Colonoscopy with biopsy diagnosed 64.4%, and 8.7% had a family history of CD. Of these, 118 (79.2%) had an early diagnosis, while 31 (20.8%) had a late diagnosis. Late-diagnosed patients had a significantly longer time to diagnose complications and were more likely to be non-S. They also had a higher prevalence of kidney oxalate calculi and Asacol use, while early-diagnosed patients had a reduced appetite and fatigue. Multivariate logistic regression found no significant risk factors for late diagnosis. Conclusion: Delayed CD diagnosis is associated with kidney oxalate calculi. The link between early diagnosis and clinical complications remains inconclusive, requiring further multicenter longitudinal studies.