(P18-031-24) Symptom Management and Quality of Life in US Adults With Irritable Bowel Syndrome by Subtype

Objectives: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is notoriously difficult to manage. Notably, diet, exercise, and over the counter medications are widely employed for symptomatic support, especially among those who remain undiagnosed due to various medical barriers and/or not seeking treatment. We sought to explore differences among IBS subtypes and methodologies to alleviate depression-related symptoms and improve quality of life (QOL) in IBS sufferers.

Methods: A nation-wide survey of US adults (18-50) suffering with Rome IV Criteria-defined IBS was distributed by Qualtrics Panels from July to August 2023. A battery of questions assessing frequency and intensity of symptoms were aggregated to create an IBSQOL score, with higher values indicating lower QOL. Depression was measured using the 9-item patient health questionnaire (PHQ-9). Chi-squared analysis, analysis of variance, Pearson correlation, and backward stepwise regression assessed relationships among IBS subtypes with regard to IBSQOL and PHQ9.

Results: 1,663 responses of the 2,063 attempted were removed/excluded due to comorbid gastrointestinal conditions, lack of symptoms, or survey response errors. Therefore, 400 responses were analyzed. 63% of respondents had a medical diagnosis of IBS and 86% were female. Respondents were 34±9 years old with BMI 29.2±7.9 kg/m². Greater than 60% of respondents reported that a healthcare professional had informed them of anxiety as a contributing factor for their IBS symptoms. The mean PHQ-9 score was 11.6±6.1 (range 0-27). Regression analysis of PHQ9 indicated that only lifestyle modification to reduce stress was associated with lower depression (p=.034); whereas, prescription medication (p=0.170), exercise (p=0.114), diet (p=0.72), and herbal supplementation (p=0.051) were not predictive of depression severity. Among all respondents, IBSQOL and PHQ-9 were highly correlated (r=.402, p< .001) and most strongly associated in IBS-D (r=.544, p< .001).

Conclusions: These results indicate a large proportion of IBS sufferers are undiagnosed and lifestyle modifications to reduce stress might be a beneficial methodology to improve depressive symptoms and quality of life.

Funding Sources: This study was supported by AU College of Human Sciences, the College of Nursing, the Office of Undergraduate Research, and the College of Human Science’s Women’s Philanthropy Board.