GET THE APP

Irritable Bowel Syndrome Patients' Use of Primary Healthcare and

Primary Health Care: Open Access

ISSN - 2167-1079

Opinion - (2021) Volume 11, Issue 9

Irritable Bowel Syndrome Patients' Use of Primary Healthcare and Self-Reported Health

Akpor Ewoz
 

Author info »

Abstract

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a poorly understood public health problem that affects a significant portion of the population. Despite the fact that co-morbidity can influence diagnosis and therapy, there are few studies on diagnosed and registered co-morbidity in IBS patients in primary care. The researchers used data from a county-wide computerised medical record system to compare co-morbidity among IBS patients to age- and sex-matched controls from the general population. Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a chronic gastrointestinal disorder that is linked to a lower quality of life and greater healthcare utilisation. Health self-ratings have been shown to be a reliable predictor of health outcomes. In both IBS and non-IBS patients, a lack of gastrointestinal symptoms, a high sense of coherence, and a younger age were linked to higher self-rated health. The examination of diagnoses from the HCR revealed a broad spectrum of common co-morbidity and significantly more physician-recorded diagnoses among IBS-patients in comparison to the control group in this population-based case–control study.

Introduction

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a frequent functional gastrointestinal disorder (FGD) that affects a small percentage of the general population but is a "hidden" public health problem. IBS has been linked to a wide range of psychological and physical symptoms and discomforts, as well as a decreased quality of life and higher health-care utilization [1]. Fear of serious gastrointestinal (GI) or other sickness is a common reason for this group of people to seek medical help. For correct diagnosis of FGDs and treatment options for this patient population, adequate assessment of co-morbidity is critical. Despite the fact that FGDs are seldom life-threatening, excluding severe disorders such as various types of gastrointestinal cancer is a significant clinical problem. Because psychological, social, and biological factors all play a role, therapeutic decision-making is often complex, even though the impact of each of these elements is likely to be different in various patients and may change over time for the same person [2-4]. Today's treatments are starting to address the multifactorial etiology, and include both pharmacological and non-pharmaceutical options, such as hypnotherapy and cognitive behavioural therapy [5]. In contrast to several of these findings, a recent study in primary care found that IBS patients were not heavy users of health care and that the majority of IBS patients only saw their GP for abdominal symptoms. According to other studies, over half of all IBS patients in general care and specialised clinics had at least one co-morbid symptom. Fibromyalgia, migraine, chronic fatigue syndrome, major depression, and panic disorder are among the comorbidities associated with IBS, according to Hudson et al. Patients who have one or more co-morbid illnesses have more severe IBS symptoms, more mental complaints, and more illness-related absenteeism than those who do not. In addition to the irritable bowel syndrome itself, psychosocial factors may impact health-care seeking behaviours [3]. Anxiety and depression are more common in IBS patients than in healthy controls, according to studies. The causal link between IBS and psychological factors, on the other hand, is yet uncertain. Although co-morbidity can influence the diagnosis and management of IBS, there are few studies on diagnosed co-morbidity in primary care IBS patients. Because there is overlap between other GI diseases, it is generally known that a broad range of diagnostic techniques is required to rule out other conditions when IBS is suspected. GI and other co-morbidity have previously been described in IBS cases, but most of these studies were conducted among IBS health care seekers, and just a few were based on a population-based design [4,5].

Conclusion

IBS sufferers appear to be more concerned about major diseases than the overall population. In comparison to age- and sex-matched controls in the general population, they also appear to have greater physician-diagnosed co-morbidity. This co-casual morbidity's direction has to be researched more.

References

  1. Chang, F., & Lu, C.L. “Irritable bowel syndrome and migraine; bystanders or partners?” J Neurogastenterol Motil 19(2013):301-311.
  2. Mulak, A., & Paradowski, L. “Migraine and irritable bowel syndrome.” Neurol Neurochir Pol 39(2005):S55-S60.
  3. Vos, D.M. “Joint involvement associated with inflammatory bowel disease.” Dig Dis 27(2009):511-515.
  4. Bijkerk, C.J., et al. “Irritable bowel syndrome in primary care: the patients' and doctors' views on symptoms, etiology and management. Canadian journal of gastroenterology.” Can J Gastroenterol 17.6(2003):363-406.
  5. El-Salhy, M. “Recent developments in the pathophysiology of irritable bowel syndrome.” World J Gastroenterol 21.25(2015):7621-7636.

Author Info

Akpor Ewoz
 
1Department of Medical Sciences, Adekunle Ajasin University, Nigeria
 

Citation: Ewoz, A. Irritable Bowel Syndrome Patients' Use of Primary Healthcare and Self-Reported Health. Prim Health Care, 2021, 11(9), 402.

Received: 05-Sep-2021 Published: 06-Oct-2021, DOI: 10.35248/2167-1079.21.11.402

Copyright: 2021 Akpor Ewoz. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.