Different risk factors for advanced colorectal neoplasm in young adults

AIM: To compare the risk of developing advanced colorectal neoplasm (ACRN) according to age in Koreans. METHODS: A total of 70428 Koreans from an occupational cohort who underwent a colonoscopy between 2003 and 2012 at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital were retrospectively selected. We evaluated and compared odds ratios (OR) for ACRN between the young-adults (YA < 50 years) and in the older-adults (OA ≤ 50 years). ACRN was defined as an adenoma ≤ 10 mm in diameter, adenoma with any component of villous histology, high-grade dysplasia, or invasive cancer. RESULTS: In the YA group, age (OR = 1.08, 95%CI: 1.06-1.09), male sex (OR = 1.26, 95%CI: 1.02-1.55), current smoking (OR = 1.37, 95%CI: 1.15-1.63), family history of colorectal cancer (OR = 1.46, 95%CI: 1.01-2.10), diabetes mellitus related factors (OR = 1.27, 95%CI: 1.06-1.54), obesity (OR = 1.23, 95%CI: 1.03-1.47), CEA (OR = 1.04, 95%CI: 1.01-1.09) and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (OR = 1.01, 95%CI: 1.01-1.02) were related with an increased risk of ACRN. However, age (OR = 1.08, 95%CI: 1.06-1.09), male sex (OR = 2.12, 95%CI: 1.68-2.68), current smoking (OR = 1.38, 95%CI: 1.12-1.71), obesity (OR = 1.34, 95%CI: 1.09-1.65) and CEA (OR = 1.05, 95%CI: 1.01-1.09) also increased the risk of ACRN in the OA group. CONCLUSION: The risks of ACRN differed based on age group. Different colonoscopic screening strategies are appropriate for particular subjects with risk factors for ACRN, even in subjects younger than 50 years.