OBJECTIVE: To classify chronic abdominal pain in children and adolescents, according to Rome II criteria and to define diagnosis outcome in a three-year follow-up period. METHODS: During one year, 71 consecutive new patients with abdominal pain were seen in a tertiary pediatric gastroenterology outclinic. Organic diseases were excluded by physical examination and laboratory procedures, and clinical complaints were evaluated according to Rome II criteria for children abdominal pain. In order to establish definitive diagnosis, patients were followed for a mean of three years. RESULTS: Allocation of the 71 patients was: organic disease (n=12), complete remission of symptoms following first clinical presentation (n=7), and functional disease (n=52). Nine patients from the organic disease group, who had been diagnosed as having lactose intolerance, were re-allocated to the functional disease criteria since their symptoms did not relieve when lactose was excluded from their diet. Out of the 52 patients of the functional disease group (median age=9.3 years, 50% boys), nine children with initial diagnosis of functional abdominal pain were re-allocated to functional constipation diagnosis during follow-up, and other 43 patients fulfilled the functional disease diagnosis defined by Rome II: 24 with functional dyspepsia, 18 with functional abdominal pain and one with irritable bowel syndrome. CONCLUSIONS: In a group of children with chronic abdominal pain, functional diseases were found more frequently than organic diseases, and functional dyspepsia was the commonest subtype. Long term follow-up was useful to establish definitive diagnosis in children with chronic abdominal pain.
abdominal pain; irritable bowel syndrome; child
