The causal association between inflammatory bowel disease and pancreatitis: a two-sample Mendelian randomization study

Abstract

Background Clinical studies showed a relationship between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and pancreatitis. This study employed a Mendelian randomization (MR) approach to determine whether there is a causal association between IBD and pancreatitis. Methods Genome-wide association study data on IBD were acquired from the International Inflammatory Bowel Disease Genetics Consortium. Summary statistics for acute pancreatitis (AP), chronic pancreatitis (CP), alcohol-induced acute pancreatitis (AAP), and alcohol-induced chronic pancreatitis (ACP) were from the FinnGen database. Inverse-variance weighting (IVW) was used to perform a two-sample MR analysis. Heterogeneity tests, horizontal pleiotropy tests, and sensitivity analyses were used to ensure the consistency and accuracy of our results. Results The incidence of AP in IBD populations was 1.063 times higher than in the control population (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.008–1.121, IVW p = 0.023). The CP incidence in IBD populations was 1.075 times higher than in the comparative population (95% CI: 1.004–1.153, IVW p = 0.039). AP incidence in Crohn’s disease (CD) populations was 1.056 times higher than in the comparative population (95% CI: 1.010–1.105, IVW p = 0.017). The CP incidence in CD populations was approximately 1.070 times higher than in the comparative population (95% CI: 1.009–1.135, IVW p = 0.024). AP incidence in ulcerative colitis (UC) populations was 1.070 folds higher than in the general population (95% CI: 1.007–1.137, IVW p = 0.030), AAP incidence in UC populations was 1.189 times higher than in the general population (95% CI: 1.009–1.135, IVW p = 0.024). Conclusion IBD increases the risk of AP and CP. CD was related to AP and CP. UC had a causality with AP and AAP. Our research verified that IBD increased the risk of pancreatitis.