Gut
September 7, 2026 · via Europe PMC
Multinational prevalence and burden of paediatric disorders of gut-brain interaction: results of the Rome Foundation paediatric global study.
Nurko S, Taft T, Palsson OS, +9 more, Sperber AD.
AI summary — for doctors, generated from the abstract only
A multinational Rome Foundation study found that disorders of gut-brain interaction affect 28% of children globally, with substantial geographic variation (highest in Mexico, lowest in China), a strong decline with age, and significant associations with anxiety, depression, functional disability, and healthcare utilization, particularly when upper and lower symptoms overlap.
What was studied
A multinational study (Rome Foundation Paediatric Global Study) surveying caregivers of 8000 children aged 0-17 years across China, Italy, Mexico, and the USA using an online Rome V survey assessing gastrointestinal symptoms, illness burden, and comorbid health conditions, calculating prevalence by disorder category, country, sex, and age.
Key findings
- Overall, 28.0% of children (95% CI 27.0-29.0%) had at least one disorder of gut-brain interaction; upper DGBI affected 8.7% and lower DGBI affected 23.7%, with defecation/anorectal disorders (20.2%) being the most common lower disorder, followed by abdominal pain disorders (4.4%); gastroduodenal disorders (6.6%) were the most common upper disorder.
- Significant geographic variation was observed, with the highest prevalence in Mexico and the lowest in China; there was a female predominance in gastroduodenal and discomfort disorders, and overall prevalence declined substantially with age, from about 41% in children aged 0-3 years to 22% in adolescents.
- Disorders of gut-brain interaction were associated with significant anxiety, depression, functional disability, and healthcare utilization, as well as increased parental time spent in care and coordination, particularly when upper and lower DGBI overlapped in the same child.
Clinical relevance
The findings suggest that pediatric disorders of gut-brain interaction represent a substantial and burdensome global health issue affecting over a quarter of children, with meaningful geographic and age-related variation, which may support improved recognition, classification, and targeted clinical care, particularly for children with overlapping upper and lower symptoms who face the greatest associated burden.
Who should care
Limitations
This was a caregiver-reported survey rather than clinically confirmed diagnoses, which is a standard limitation of large-scale epidemiological surveys of this type, and the specific countries surveyed may not represent global patterns in all regions.
A global survey found pediatric disorders of gut-brain interaction affect 28% of children worldwide with substantial geographic and age variation, and are associated with significant anxiety, depression, functional disability, and healthcare utilization, especially when upper and lower symptoms overlap.
This is an AI-generated summary of the published abstract, not a clinical recommendation. It may not reflect the full text or subsequent updates — verify against the original source before acting on it.
Abstract
Background
Global prevalence estimates of paediatric disorders of gut-brain interaction (DGBI) are largely unknown and published studies are hindered by heterogeneous methodology.
Objective
To determine the multinational prevalence and burden of paediatric DGBI as defined by Rome V.
Design
Caregivers of 8000 children aged 0-17 years from China, Italy, Mexico and the USA completed an online Rome V survey assessing gastrointestinal symptoms, illness burden and comorbid health conditions. Prevalence was calculated by DGBI category, country, sex and age.
Results
Paediatric DGBI were highly prevalent, affecting 28.0% (95% CI 27.0% to 29.0%) of children. Upper DGBI were present in 8.7% (95% CI 8.2% to 9.5%) and lower DGBI in 23.7% (95% CI 22.8% to 24.7%). The most common lower DGBI were defecation and anorectal disorders (20.2%) followed by abdominal pain disorders (4.4%) and discomfort disorders (1.8%). The most common upper DGBI were gastroduodenal disorders (6.6%), followed by functional feeding disorders (3.4%) and oesophageal disorders (0.6%). Significant geographic differences were observed with the highest prevalence in Mexico and the lowest in China. There was a female predominance in gastroduodenal and discomfort disorders. Overall prevalence declined with age, from approximately 41% in children aged 0-3 years to 22% in adolescents. DGBI were associated with significant anxiety, depression, functional disability and healthcare utilisation, as well as parental time spent in care and coordination particularly when upper and lower DGBI overlapped.
Conclusions
This global Rome V study demonstrates the high multi-national prevalence, burden and heterogeneity of paediatric DGBI, supporting improved recognition, classification, research and clinical care.
DOI
10.1136/gutjnl-2026-339667
PMID
42613193
Research metadata (titles, abstracts, authors, publication dates) is sourced from Europe PMC, which aggregates content from PubMed/MEDLINE, PubMed Central, and other providers under the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM/NCBI). NLM does not claim copyright on abstracts; the original journal publishers or authors may hold rights to the full articles. AI-generated summaries are derived only from the abstract, never the full text, and are always labeled as AI-generated.
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