ArticleClinical gastroenterology and hepatology : the official clinical practice journal of the American Gastroenterological Association2016
Distribution and Characteristics of Colonic Diverticula in a United States Screening Population.
Article in Clinical gastroenterology and hepatology : the official clinical practice journal of the American Gastroenterological Association, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 94 papers, 8 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
94 citing papers in PubMed, 8 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 180 citations in OpenAlex.
- Are Nuts Safe in Diverticulosis? A Mixed-Methods Systematic Review of Available Evidence.Nutrients · 2025Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Diverticulosis and cardiometabolic risk factors: a systematic literature review.International journal of colorectal disease · 2023Pooled it
- Incidence of diverticulitis recurrence after sigmoid colectomy: a retrospective cohort study from a tertiary center and systematic review.International journal of colorectal disease · 2023Pooled it
- Preventing acute diverticulitis. any roles for non-absorbable antibiotics? in search of evidence: a systematic review, meta-analysis, and trial sequential analysis.Frontiers in gastroenterology (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2023Pooled it
- Diverticulitis does not increase the long-term risk of developing colon cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.International journal of colorectal disease · 2022Pooled it
- Antibiotics for uncomplicated diverticulitis.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2022Pooled it
- Smoking and risk of colonic diverticulosis: A meta-analysis.Journal of postgraduate medicinePooled it
- Trial
- Observational
- Nationwide attribute-based cross-classification reveals distinct risk patterns of major complications in ADPKD.Clinical and experimental nephrology · 2026Article
- Association betweenBMJ open gastroenterology · 2026Observational
- Association between embolic agent choice and complications after transcatheter arterial embolization for colonic diverticular bleeding.European radiology · 2026Article
- Predictive factors for conservative treatment failure of acute complicated diverticulitis: a single-center retrospective analysis.Updates in surgery · 2026Article
- Comprehensive review on the current management of lower-gut bleed.Indian journal of gastroenterology : official journal of the Indian Society of Gastroenterology · 2026Review
- Proton pump inhibitor use is not independently associated with colonic diverticulosis in an asymptomatic screening population.Scientific reports · 2026Observational
- Crypt abscesses, crypt distortion, and crypt rupture may help distinguish inflammatory bowel disease from segmental colitis associated with diverticulosis.Virchows Archiv : an international journal of pathology · 2025Article
- The Epidemiology of Diverticulitis.Clinics in colon and rectal surgery · 2025Review
- Management of Colonic Diverticular Disease in the Older Adult.Current gastroenterology reports · 2025Review
- Frailty is a prognostic marker of mortality and sepsis in patients ≥ 70 years with acute left-sided colonic diverticulitis.International journal of colorectal disease · 2025Article
34 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
BACKGROUND &
aimsColonic diverticula are the most common finding from colonoscopy examinations. Little is known about the distribution of colonic diverticula, which are responsible for symptomatic and costly diverticular disease. We aimed to assess the number, location, and characteristics of colonic diverticula in a large US screening population.
methodsWe analyzed data from a prospective study of 624 patients (mean age, 54 years) undergoing screening colonoscopy at the University of North Carolina Hospital from 2013 through 2015. The examination included a detailed assessment of colonic diverticula. To assess the association between participant characteristics and diverticula, we used logistic regression to estimate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals.
resultsOf our population, 260 patients (42%) had 1 or more diverticula (mean number, 14; range, 1-158). Participants with diverticula were more likely to be older, male, and have a higher body mass index than those without diverticula. The distribution of diverticula differed significantly by race. Among white persons, 75% of diverticula were in the sigmoid colon, 11% in the descending splenic flexure, 6% in the transverse colon, and 8% were in the ascending colon or hepatic flexure. In black persons 64% of diverticula were in the sigmoid colon, 8% in the descending colon or splenic flexure, 7% in the transverse colon, and 20% in the ascending colon or hepatic flexure (P = .0008). The proportion of patients with diverticula increased with age: 35% were 50 years or younger, 40% were 51-60 years, and 58% were older than 60 years. The proportion of patients with more than 10 diverticula increased with age: 8% were 50 years or younger, 15% were 51-60 years, and 30% were older than 60 years.
conclusionsOlder individuals not only have a higher prevalence of diverticula than younger individuals, but also a greater density, indicating that this is a progressive disease. Black persons have a greater percentage of their diverticula in the proximal colon and fewer in the distal colon compared with white persons. Understanding the distribution and determinants of diverticula is the first step in preventing diverticulosis and its complications.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.