Digestive System Your Family's Guide to Understanding The Digestive System

IBS

IBS is also known as spastic colon or spastic colitis, this condition is marked by chronic (more than six months) of abdominal pain, alternating bouts of constipation and diarrhea, passing gas, a sense of incomplete evacuation, and abdominal distention. Irritable bowel syndrome is strongly linked to stress and is more likely to affect women more than men.

Causes

Irritable bowel syndrome often occurs along with elevated stress levels but may also result from physical factors such as:

Ingestion of irritants (coffee, uncooked fruits and vegetables, milk)
Abuse of laxatives
Periods in women

Symptoms

The following symptoms may alternate with constipation and normal bowel function:

Lower abdominal pain, usually relieved by defecation or passing of gas
Diarrhea
Small, mucoid stools
Dyspepsia
Abdominal distention

Tests

Sigmoidoscopy/colonoscopy & - this is an examination of the colon or a portion of it (sigmoid), using a long flexible optical tube which sends out images through a video monitor. This is useful in spotting lesions, ulcers, and other masses in the intestine which could help rule out other GI disorders

Barium enema - this allows an x-ray image of the colon with the use of a barium contrast medium, which is injected via the rectum prior to the x-ray exam; it is useful in giving a detailed x-ray picture of the structure of the colon and possible abnormalities

Rectal biopsy - this may be done during a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy; a piece of tissue from the rectal mucosa is obtained through excision for microscopic examination; a biopsy is useful in confirming if the tissue sample is benign or malignant and can help rule out cancer

Stool exam - this is useful in spotting gross or occult blood in the stool, parasites and other bacteria and may help rule out other disorders

Treatment

Counseling is often useful in helping patients understand the relationship of stress with the illness. Strict dietary restrictions are not beneficial but food irritants, once identified, should be avoided. Rest is advised and the use of sedatives and antispasmodics may be recommended.

However, patients are often be monitored for dependence which could result from chronic use of the drugs. Bowel retraining may be helpful if IBS was caused by chronic laxative abuse. The right diet and adequate hydration is always important to prevent possible malnutrition and dehydration which could result from the chronic diarrhea.

By: Daniel77

IBS Recommended Resources:

The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions

University of Maryland Medical Center

Julia Friedman 14.04.09 at 00:51am

Since women are mostly prone to IBS, it is best to let them visit stress management programs. stress release can also be done in spas, beauty saloons, shopping, cooking and sometimes sports.

Jackie Dozier 25.07.09 at 06:51am

I have always had a normal bowel movement. Going to the bathroom once a day and for the last month or so I have not been able to go unless I take a laxative and even that is not too successful. I have been passing gas like I never have before and I sometimes have burping constantly, my stomach has become bloated and no matter what I try to do to have a bowel movement it's not working, there is even some nausea at times.

Please inform.

cyndi jackson 24.08.09 at 08:25am

i get severe pain on my lower left side ( colon ) once i feel this pain i have to get to a bathroom. i will continue to have bowel movement until the pain is gone. it is not diarrea . i go at least 2 times a day even when the pain is not present . is this ibs and if so what can i do to prevent it. there are times when i i can not make it to the bathroom once this pain hits.

t moist 04.01.10 at 18:24pm

for the past 2 months i have been experiencing irregular bowel problems...having a bowel movement is harder usually producing small pellet like stools..sometimes i get that crampy feeling usually several times lasting up to an hour and then have a bowel movement...when this occurs my stools are softer...i sometimes have the feeling of having to go but produce nothing...during those times i sometimes strain...this sometimes produces a bloody stool...every once in a while i have a normal bowel movement...what do i do

Mallory 13.03.10 at 08:34am

Jackie and Cyndi,

Do you notice that the symptoms seem to always happen when you eat certain types of food?

Dairy (milk, cheese, ice cream) and/or Gluten (bread and wheat pasta)can sometimes cause the symptoms you described.

Lisa 07.05.10 at 01:18am

For the past several years, at least once a year I'd have severe, excruciating abdominal pain. I'd always end up in the emergency room after about the 3rd day of experiencing this severe pain. I'd always be administered pain meds and meds for dehydration. Recently, over the past several months these pains have become more frequent and more severe. I saw my primary that referred me to a G.I (gastro intrologist) specialist.....well after months of waiting, about 1o catscans (ct's), they ruled out chrones and a few other diagnosis. I finally got a diagnosis of IBS. I began to feel like a guinea pig for the medical field but after all the meds prescribed my GI said that the IBS is truly stress related......Crazy enough what helped me was my anti-anxiety med (xanax). It took away the pain and cramping and the nausea. Of course, the pain meds helped too, but my life is under an unusually amount of stress....(my 23 yr old son murdred his 19 year old wife). Which is enough to send anyone over the edge. But the anti-anxiety meds and the pain meds (ultram) helps tremendously. I hope this helps someone. Most of us don't realize how much stress can effect our bodies and I'm now a firm believer that IBS can be directly a huge stress factor.

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