Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of the common diseases that can be found in all genders and ages, but it is often found in working-age people. However, it is often overlooked. In fact, this disease has been reported for a long time, and no one knows the exact cause. But it is often associated with people who have high stress.
Diagnosis therefore relies on a group of symptoms combined and ruling out other diseases with similar symptoms. Patients with this disease often have intermittent abdominal pain over a period of time (generally at least 3 months).
The abdominal pain usually improves after defecation, and when observing the stool, patients often have constipation or diarrhea as well. In reality, this disease is not dangerous but can cause discomfort to patients because the pain often comes and goes. Patients often worry and fear that they might have a serious disease because they have taken medication and seen doctors many times but the symptoms do not completely disappear. The importance of this disease lies in
First, once diagnosed, patients must be reassured that they will not develop a serious disease in the future.
Second, treatment focuses on creating understanding and using symptomatic medication to reduce pain and improve the patient’s quality of life.
However, the most important thing is diagnosis because some serious diseases have symptoms similar to irritable bowel syndrome, such as colorectal cancer and chronic inflammatory bowel disease. Therefore, sometimes doctors need to perform various tests to ensure that nothing is hidden before treatment, which mostly includes
– Stool examination
– Blood test
– Abdominal X-ray or ultrasound
– Colonoscopy
Depending on the symptoms when the patient visits the doctor, in some cases, after providing sufficient information about the disease to the patient, the patient’s anxiety is relieved and the symptoms naturally improve.
Gastroenterology and Hepatology Center
Tel. 02-617-2444 ext. 7401 or 7406
