Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), comprising of ulcerative (UC) colitis and Crohn’s disease (CD), are chronic relapsing disorders of unknown etiology. The environmental factors in addition to genetic predisposition are thought to play an important role in the pathogenesis of these diseases. IBD was found to be more common in urban areas than in the rural environment. So far, there have been no reports of the frequency of IBD in Polish rural regions. The aim of the study was to describe the characteristics of IBD in patients from semi-rural and rural regions hospitalized in the Department of Gastroenterology of the Medical University of Lublin between 2000–2006. Methods: A retrospective systematic search of clinical records, identifying cases of infl ammatory bowel disease. Results: In the 2000–2006 period of the study, 727 cases of IBD were recorded, of which 334 (46%) originated from semi-rural and rural regions. UC accounted for 69.2% (231 patients) while CD for 30.8% (103 patients). The total number of patients with IBD was higher in the last 3 years (435 patients), compared to 2000–2003 (292 patients). Demographic data, clinical presentation and the location of the disease in patients with IBD from rural and semi-rural regions are similar to patients from urban communities. Conclusion: The rise in hospital admission rates of patients with UC and CD from rural and semi-rural regions confi rms the observation of an increasing incidence of IBD in areas, where these diseases were less common in the past.