OBJECTIVES: to describe a series of non-specific ulcerative colitis with focus on the initial manifestation of the disease, propedeutics and interval between the first symptoms and diagnosis. METHODS: retrospective analysis of non-specific ulcerative colitis with symptoms appearing before 20 years old. Patients were selected in the Pediatrics Gastroenterology Services of the Hospital das Clínicas da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais and of the Instituto Materno Infantil de Pernambuco. RESULTS: 29 patients with the diagnosis of non-specific ulcerative colitis were identified with fifteen patients (51.7%) of the male sex. The age of the beginning of the symptoms varied between 0.3 to 15.8. The most frequent symptoms of the diagnosis were diarrhea (89.7%) and abdominal pain (82.8%). The most common extra-intestinal manifestation was arthralgia/arthritis (41.4%) The weight for age ratio was below the 3 percentile in 13.8% of the patients. Time interval between symptoms appearance and diagnosis varied between 01 and 10.9 years old. CONCLUSIONS: time interval between initial symptoms and diagnosis remains high in our Region due to many different factors.
Ulcerative colities; Adolescent; Child
