June 03, 2018
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IBS-C linked to pelvic floor symptoms

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WASHINGTON — Patients with constipation predominant irritable bowel syndrome are more likely to experience pelvic floor-related distress compared to others with chronic constipation, according to research presented at Digestive Disease Week.

Perspective from Mark Pimentel, MD

Prashant Singh, MD, of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center said that pelvic floor symptoms such as urinary tract symptoms and pelvic organ prolapse often coexist with constipation.

“Patients with IBS-constipation have higher somatic and psychiatric comorbidities compared to functional constipation patients,” Singh said in a presentation. “It is also possible that patients with IBS-constipation subtype have higher pelvic floor symptom severity compared to functional constipation patients. However, no study has compared disfunction related to pelvic floor symptoms between IBS constipation and functional constipation.”

Singh and colleagues conducted a retrospective analysis of patients who underwent anorectal manometry (ARM) and balloon expulsion tests to determine if pelvic floor symptom-related distress is different between patients with IBS-C and functional constipation, which comprises the larger group of patients with chronic constipation.

Researchers determined chronic constipation symptoms through the ARM test and measured pelvic floor distress using the PFDI-20 questionnaire. They diagnosed patients with either IBS-C or FC using ROME-III criteria and measured constipation severity using a constipation severity scale (CSS).

Of 133 patients included in the study, 83 had FC and 50 had IBS-C.

Singh and colleagues found that the overall PFDI-20 score was higher in patients with IBS-C compared with patients with FC (116 vs. 77.4; P < .001). Using multivariate regression, they found that IBS-C (P < .001) and higher CSS scores (P = .001) were both independently associated with higher PFDI scores. Conversely, they did not find a link between higher PFDI scores and ARM measures or abnormal balloon expulsion tests.

“Pelvic floor-related distress correlated with diagnosis of IBS-C and higher constipation severity,” Singh said. “It did not correlate with findings on anorectal manometry or balloon expulsion time.” – by Alex Young

Reference:

Singh P, et al. Abstract 261. Presented at: Digestive Disease Week; June 2-5, 2018; Washington, D.C.

Disclosures: Singh reports no relevant financial disclosures. Please see the DDW faculty disclosure index for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.