Bone health in children with recurrent and chronic pancreatitis: A multi-center cross sectional analysis

Background/objectives: Bone health of children with acute recurrent pancreatitis (ARP) and chronic pancreatitis (CP) is not well studied. Methods: This retrospective study was performed at three sites and included data from INSPPIRE-2. Results: Of the 87 children in the study: 46 had ARP (53%), 41 had CP (47%). Mean age was 13.6 ± 3.9 years at last DXA scan. The prevalence of low height-for-age (Z-score < −2) (13%, 10/78) and low bone mineral density (BMD) adjusted for height (Z-score < −2) (6.4%, 5/78) were higher than a healthy reference sample (2.5%, p < 0.0001 and p = 0.03, respectively). Conclusion: Children with ARP or CP have lower height and BMD than healthy peers. Attention to deficits in growth and bone mineral accrual in children with pancreatic disease is warranted.