30 - IBS and IBD Flashcards
Which of IBS and IBD is a structural abnormality and which is structurally normal but is a functional gut disorder
IBS - functional gut motility. Structurally normal
IBD - structural abnormality
What do I need to know?
- Concept of functional GI disease
- The mechanism for abdominal pain in irritable bowel syndrome
- The common symptoms for irritable bowel syndrome and management
Structural or functional more common in practice?
Functional gut disorders
What are function gut disorders thought to be due to?
multiple factors that impede on gut function incl
- Gut motility
- Visceral Hypersensitivity
- Brain-gut communication dysfunction
- Physcological factors i.e. worsens with anxiety
Why are functional gut disorders hard to diagnose?
No obvious pathology so no particular test. No biochemical abnormality, histological or radiological features. Is instead diagnosed of exclusion
What is the Rome Criteria?
Rome criteria is the criteria for the diagnosis of all functional GI disorders developed by experts of the Rome Foundation
Don’t strictly have to meet these criteria to be diagnosed with a functional gut disorder
Is more used in study and research than clinically
Where can function gut disorders affect?
any part of the gut
Where does IBS in particular affect
The SI and LI
4 examples of functional GI disorders?
- Globus
- Functional heartburn
- Functional dyspepsia
- Functional vomitting
2 examples of functional GI disorders in SI/LI
IBS
> abdominal discomfort and bloating associated with defecation and altered bowel habit. Symptoms normally improved after bowel motion
Functional abdominal pain
> no change in bowel habit
> recurrent/consistent abd pain NOT associated with defecation
What are the 2 classical symptoms of IBS?
- Swinging bowel habit
2. abd pain relieved with defecation
4 associated symptoms of IBS?
- urgency and feeling if incomplete evacuation
- passage of mucus
- abdominal bloating
- excess flatus
When may IBS occur
Post infection/GEnteritis (post-infective IBS)
What are the 8 alarm signals
- older (40/50)
- short history
- weight loss
- anaemia/iron deficiency
- rectal bleeding
- vomiting
- nocturnal symtoms
How common is IBS and who do you usually see it in?
common - about 20% of people. More common in women. Early onset 20-30
What other non-specific associated symptoms do you also see in IBS?
These are not required for diagnosis but often occur
- fatigue
- Functional dyspepsia
- early satiety and post prandial fullness
- nausea
- back or headache
- urinary symptoms
- dysmennorhea
- palpitations
- poor sleep
Dont related to the gut suggesting issue is bigger to do with pain perception/brain-gut communication or disordered visceral sensitivity
Alarm signals
- Vomiting
- Elderly
- Sudden onset/short history
- Anaemia/iron deficiency (occult bleeding)
- PR bleeding
- Nocturnal symtoms
- Family history
- Weight loss
What 2 things contribute to IBS symptoms (pathophysiology)
- Altered gut motility
2. Visceral hypersensitivity
What does altered gut motility mean in IBS
- swinging bowel habit
- altered frequency and duration of contractions
- transit time
- exaggerated response to meal ingestion and stress
i.e. exaggerated with diarrhoea reduced with constipation
There is usually a predominant one over the other
What does altered gut motility/frequency and duration of contractions suggest
Abnormal signalling
What symptoms does altered gut motility cause?
Swinging bowel habit
i.e. alters frequency and duration of contraction, transit time, exaggerated response to ingestion and stress
Visceral Hypersensitivity
- more sensitive to and find distension more painful at lower intensity
- have more awareness and perception of distension meaning they have a lower threshold to pain
What 2 categories does visceral hypersensitivity fall into
Peripheral and central sensitisation
Peripheral Sensitisation
Problem in the gut
- can be post infective IBS
- previous inflammation can up-regulate the sensitivity of nociceptors leading to increased sensitivity to pain stimuli
- also increases sensitivity to non-painful stimuli perceiving it as painful
Central sensitisation
Brain
- Peripheral sensitisation can leading to surrounding uninjured tissue to also become hypersensitive
- this is why IBS patients can get pain beyond the gut as it may be the innervation of gut CONVERGING with the innervation of somatic structure at the spinal cord
Why may IBS patients experience symptoms and pain beyond the gut
May be convergence of gut innervation and somatic structure innervation at the spinal cord
How is central brain processing involved in IBS
- how the brain processes visceral sensation differs in IBS
- different parts of brain activated
- the differences in how the brain processes pain contributes to symptoms away from the gut
What is the spinal cord gate control theory
That the brain usually filters out SOME peripheral pain signals
In IBS it is thought that when the pain from the periphery encounters these nerve gates in the spinal cord the signals aren’t filtered and so all reach the brain