Analysis of the Epidemiological Trends on Inpatient Diverticulosis Admissions in the US: A Longitudinal Analysis From 1997-2018

Background Diverticulosis of the colon is characterized by outpouchings of mucosa and serosa through the muscular layer of the large intestinal wall. It is classically associated with increasing age with older individuals having a higher prevalence and greater density of diverticula secondary to its progressive disease nature. Also, diverticular disease is associated with dietary habits, low fiber intake in western society as well as obesity. The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiological trends associated with diverticular disease in the United States in a 21-year interval from 1997 to 2018. Methods Using the Nationwide Inpatient Sample, all hospitalizations between 1997 and 2018 were analyzed. We examined annual data for hospitalization rate, the average length of stay (LOS), mean age and interval age groups, and hospital charges for inpatient admissions for diverticular disease (diverticulitis and diverticulosis). Results Between 1997 and 2018, the number of hospitalizations for patients with a primary discharge diagnosis of diverticular disease (diverticulosis and diverticulitis) increased 32% from 220,896 to 293,530 with 89.7 discharges per 100,000 persons in 2018 versus 81.0 discharges per 100,000 persons in 1997. Overall, the average age of patients decreased from 67.55 ± 0.15 years in 1997 to 64.59 ±0.08 in 2018, [t-value (t) 12.56, degrees of freedom (df) 514424, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.497-3.423, P