Tan Yan-Mei, Goh Khean L, Muhidayah Raja, Ooi Chee L, Salem Omar
Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2003 Dec;18(12):1412-6. doi: 10.1046/j.1440-1746.2003.03212.x.
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common functional bowel disease in the West. Information on the prevalence of IBS in the Asian population is relatively scanty. The aims of the present study were to determine the prevalence of IBS and to assess the symptom subgroups based on the predominant bowel habit in a young adult population of Asian origin.
Basic demographic data and symptoms of IBS using the Rome I criteria were sought using a questionnaire administered to all apparently healthy students in a medical school. Other questions asked related to alcohol intake, smoking, chili consumption, dietary fiber intake, and to psychological and psychosomatic symptoms of anxiety, depression, insomnia, headache, and backache. The health-care seeking behavior of the subjects was also analyzed.
Of the 610 questionnaires administered, 533 complete responses were received (response rate of 87.4%). The responders comprised 229 men (43.0%) and 304 (57.0%) women with a mean age of 22 +/- 1.8 years. The ethnic distribution was Malays 278 (52.2%), Chinese 179 (33.6%), Indians 46 (8.6%), and others 30 (5.6%). Eighty-four (15.8%) reported symptoms consistent with the diagnosis of IBS, predominantly women. Sixty-five (77.4%) and six (7.1%) were of the constipation-predominant and diarrhea-predominant IBS subgroups, respectively. Thirteen (15.5%) subjects fell into the non-specific IBS subgroup. The self-reported psychological and psychosomatic symptoms of anxiety (P = 0.02), depression (P = 0.002), insomnia (P = 0.006), headache (P = 0.04), and backache (P = 0.006) were encountered more frequently in the subjects with IBS. Only 13.1% of the IBS group had consulted their health-care practitioner, and 20.2% reported self-medication.
Symptoms supportive of the diagnosis of IBS were common among young Malaysians, with a prevalence rate of 15.8%. There were significantly more women with IBS than men. Within the IBS population, the majority (77.4%) was of the constipation-predominant IBS subgroup. A significantly higher prevalence of psychological and psychosomatic symptoms was found in individuals with IBS. Only a minority sought medical advice for their symptoms.
肠易激综合征（IBS）在西方是一种常见的功能性肠病。关于亚洲人群中IBS患病率的信息相对较少。本研究的目的是确定IBS的患病率，并根据主要排便习惯对亚洲裔年轻成年人群中的症状亚组进行评估。
通过对一所医学院所有看似健康的学生进行问卷调查，收集使用罗马I标准的IBS基本人口统计学数据和症状。还询问了其他相关问题，包括酒精摄入、吸烟、辣椒食用、膳食纤维摄入以及焦虑、抑郁、失眠、头痛和背痛等心理和心身症状。对受试者的就医行为也进行了分析。
在发放的610份问卷中，共收到533份完整回复（回复率为87.4%）。回复者包括229名男性（43.0%）和304名女性（57.0%），平均年龄为22±1.8岁。种族分布为马来人278名（52.2%）、华人179名（3
