Perfil clínico-epidemiológico das doenças inflamatórias intestinais em Santa Catarina, Brasil

Background: Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, are chronic conditions with a significant impact on quality of life. Regional data on the clinical profile of this population in Santa Catarina, Brazil, remain scarce. Objective: To describe the clinical profile and lifestyle habits of patients with IBD in Santa Catarina and to exploratorily investigate associations between behavioral factors and self-reported disease activity. Methods: Cross-sectional, descriptive study with 165 patients (83 with Crohn's disease, 82 with ulcerative colitis) recruited by convenience sampling via a patient support group and partner institutions, between March and June 2025, using a self-administered electronic questionnaire. Disease activity was estimated using non-validated adaptations of the Harvey–Bradshaw Index and the Mayo Partial Score, with chi-square tests and multivariate logistic regression. Results: There was a female predominance (77.6%) and a higher frequency of patients aged 20–39 years (53.9%), with high educational attainment, consistent with selection bias from digital recruitment. Disease activity was present in 42.1% of Crohn's disease patients and 38.4% of ulcerative colitis patients. Active smoking (OR=2.88), poor sleep quality (OR=2.41), and physical inactivity (OR=1.92) were associated with higher odds of active disease; biologic therapy, with lower odds (OR=0.41). Fistulas predominated in Crohn; arthralgia, in ulcerative colitis. Conclusion: Modifiable behavioral factors were associated with self-reported disease activity. Given the cross-sectional design and non-probabilistic recruitment, these findings should be interpreted as hypothesis-generating rather than causal or representative of the general population of patients with IBD in Santa Catarina.