Quality of Life of Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is defined by the association of abdominal pain and transit disorders for long periods of time, with a recurrent evolution. Its high prevalence and its undeniable impact on the quality of life of patients make it a real public health problem. Although it remains a diagnosis of elimination, IBS is one of these benign pathologies, which induce significant health costs and an undeniable impact on the quality of life of patients. The objective of this work is to evaluate the impact of the disease on the quality of life of patients, and to appreciate their relation to their family, social and working environment, with a view for a better support. This is a prospective observational study for descriptive purposes in a sample of the Moroccan population (the southern region). 892 people responded to a questionnaire based on the Rome IV criteria, and then, 296 of them, diagnosed with IBS, responded to a second questionnaire to evaluate their quality of life. We used the medical outcome study short form (According to MOS SF-36 Heath Survey) which assesses 8 dimensions of health. The analysis of indirect costs, more delicate, was mainly based on the evaluation of the number of days off work and the deterioration in presenteeism caused by the disease in people with paid professional activity. The average age of our participants was 41.6 years with extremes ranging from 18 to 86 years, a clear predominance of women was noted with a sex ratio = 0.5. The majority had an average economic level (62%). Symptoms were chronic and had progressed on average for 103.2 ± 59.2 months. Abdominal pain was noted in all patients. Constipation was seen in 68% of our patients, while 52% of them reported episodes of diarrhea. Most of the patients had an improper lifestyle determining a statistical link (p = 0.0001) between diet and functional colopathy. Stress was present in 43% of patients with a significant correlation (p = 0.059).