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Irritable Bowel Syndrome
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Irritable bowel syndrome is a disorder of the intestinal tract in which the individual has constipation, diarrhea or constipation alternating with diarrhea. While IBS is uncomfortable, there is nothing pathological about the colon itself and the syndrome is completely functional. Irritable bowel syndrome tends to be a relatively mild condition, although some people can have severe disease.
Unlike ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, IBS doesn't result in inflammation of the bowel tissue and doesn't alter your risk of colon cancer. It is a disease you can completely control through diet and changing aspects of your lifestyle and stressors.
The major signs and symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome include bloating in the abdomen, abdominal cramping or pain, excess gas, diarrhea and/or constipation and mucus in the stool. The symptoms can be quite mild and manageable or can be disabling, depending on the individual. IBS often occurs with other symptoms like chronic fatigue syndrome. IBS is chronic but the symptoms can come and go over time. About one in five Americans has signs and symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome.
No one knows exactly what causes IBS. The walls of the intestines have muscle layers that contract when stool passes through. In irritable bowel syndrome, this action of the muscles is uncoordinated and this results in too much relaxation or too much contraction of the muscles. The increased force of the muscles causes excess gas and discomfort.
Some people have certain triggers for IBS symptoms. It can be certain foods, such as milk, alcohol or chocolate. Some people get excess gas when they eat raw fruits and vegetables or drink carbonated beverages. There may or may not be food allergies taking place in IBS.
Stress can contribute to IBS. If you are undergoing stressful events, you may in fact have a flare up of your irritable bowel syndrome as a result. IBS varies with the hormonal changes in women, particularly around the menstrual cycle. Conditions of acute episodic infectious diarrhea can make IBS worse.
Risk factors for irritable bowel syndrome include being under the age of 35, being female (twice as many women have IBS than men), or have a family history of IBS, especially if a first degree relative has the condition.
Doctors diagnose irritable bowel syndrome by taking a complete history and medical examination. IBS often becomes a process of elimination by doing colonoscopies or upper GI endoscopies to make sure no other diagnostic problem like ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease is present. Things like lactose intolerance need to be ruled out as well. There are specific criteria, known as the Rome Criteria that can help diagnose IBS in an individual. The symptoms must last as long as 12 weeks but the weeks don't have to be consecutive. You also need to exhibit at least two of the following:
- Straining at stool or having urgency of stool
- Changing the frequency of your stools
- Having mucus in the stools
- Having abdominal distention or abdominal bloating
Things that point away from IBS include new onset after the age of 50, weight loss, rectal bleeding or fever. Other symptoms, such as chronic abdominal pain or recurrent vomiting or nausea, also point away from irritable bowel syndrome.
Some tests a doctor might do to rule out irritable bowel syndrome include having a flexible sigmoidoscopy, a colonoscopy, a CT scan of the abdomen, tests for lactose intolerance and blood tests for celiac sprue.
Treatment of IBS focuses on the relief of symptoms so the bowels work properly. You need to consider taking extra fiber in your food or through supplements, taking antidiarrheal medications, reducing high-gaseous foods and taking anticholinergic medications which decrease the amount of bowel spasms in your abdomen. Antidepressant medication is used to help you handle stress and function better with the disease. Depression is one of the conditions that can coexist with IBS. Antibiotics can be used to decrease bacterial overgrowth in the system. This also can be achieved via probiotic therapy.
Therapy can help you deal with the issues you must face when you have irritable bowel syndrome.
There are medications that work directly on irritable bowel syndrome. Lotronox is a medication that relaxes the colon and slows the movement of waste through the large colon. It was once linked to serious complications and was removed from the market. It has since been put on the market with restrictions. It is primarily used for those who have chronic diarrhea. It is approved in women only.
Amitiza is another IBS drug taken twice daily. It helps increase fluid in the bowels so that the bowels move easier. It can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain as side effects.