Table 2.
Laboratory and stool tests in IBS patients vs. controls.
| IBS | Control | IBS vs. Control, Odds Ratio (95%CI) | P-Value | IBS diagnosed by GI* | IBS diagnosed by non-GI* | IBS diagnosed by GI vs. non-GI, Odds Ratio (95%CI) | P-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blood Tests | ||||||||
| Any complete blood count | 134,688 (95.3%) | 116,065 (82.1%) | 4.43 (4.31–4.56) | <0.0001 | 14,438 (98.6%) | 97,468 (95.4%) | 3.46 (3.00–3.99) | <0.0001 |
| Any sedimentation rate | 67,961 (48.1%) | 37,700 (26.7%) | 2.55 (2.51–2.59) | <0.0001 | 8,992 (61.4%) | 48,216 (47.2%) | 1.78 (1.72–1.85) | <0.0001 |
| Any renal chemistry panel | 124,901 (88.4%) | 102,687 (72.7%) | 2.86 (2.81–2.92) | <0.0001 | 13,883 (94.8%) | 90,838 (88.9%) | 2.29 (2.12–2.47) | <0.0001 |
| Any glucose | 129,328 (91.5%) | 109,556 (77.5%) | 3.13 (3.06–3.20) | <0.0001 | 14,022 (95.8%) | 93,964 (92.0%) | 1.99 (1.83–2.16) | <0.0001 |
| Any liver function tests | 123,200 (87.2%) | 94,276 (66.7%) | 3.40 (3.33–3.46) | <0.0001 | 13,799 (94.3%) | 89,589 (87.7%) | 2.31 (2.15–2.48) | <0.0001 |
| Any thyroid function tests | 124,292 (88.0%) | 101,011 (71.5%) | 2.92 (2.86–2.97) | <0.0001 | 13,642 (93.2%) | 90,417 (88.5%) | 1.78 (1.66–1.90) | <0.0001 |
| Any celiac disease tests | 3,825 (2.7%) | 366 (0.3%) | 10.71 (9.62–11.93) | <0.0001 | 758 (5.2%) | 2,713 (2.7%) | 2.00 (1.84–2.17) | <0.0001 |
| Any H.pylori serology test | 1,487 (1.1%) | 371 (0.3%) | 4.04 (3.60–4.53) | <0.0001 | 257 (1.8%) | 841 (0.8%) | 2.15 (1.87–2.48) | <0.0001 |
| Stool Tests | ||||||||
| Any stool white cells test | 6,933 (4.9%) | 1,995 (1.4%) | 3.60 (3.43–3.79) | <0.0001 | 1,009 (6.9%) | 4,690 (4.6%) | 1.54 (1.43–1.65) | <0.0001 |
| Any fecal occult blood test | 29,517 (20.9%) | 18,148 (12.8%) | 1.79 (1.76–1.83) | <0.0001 | 3,869 (26.4%) | 21,472 (21.0%) | 1.35 (1.30–1.40) | <0.0001 |
| Any fecal fat test | 2,369 (1.7%) | 265 (0.2%) | 9.07 (7.99–10.31) | <0.0001 | 534 (3.6%) | 1,504 (1.5%) | 2.53 (2.29–2.80) | <0.0001 |
| Endoscopic Tests | ||||||||
| Sigmoidoscopy | 58,788 (41.6%) | 31,411 (22.2%) | 2.49 (2.45–2.53) | <0.0001 | 8,795 (60.1%) | 41,607 (40.7%) | 2.19 (2.11– 2.27) | <0.0001 |
| Colonoscopy | 20,069 (14.2%) | 8,746 (6.2%) | 2.51 (2.44–2.58) | <0.0001 | 4,421 (30.2%) | 13,134 (12.9%) | 2.93 (2.82–3.05) | <0.0001 |
| Upper endoscopy | 19,942 (14.1%) | 6,592 (4.7%) | 3.36 (3.26–3.46) | <0.0001 | 4,635 (31.7%) | 12,760 (12.5%) | 3.25 (3.12–3.38) | <0.0001 |
| Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography | 784 (0.6%) | 326 (0.2%) | 2.41 (2.12–2.75) | <0.0001 | 183 (1.3%) | 493 (0.5%) | 2.61 (2.20–3.10) | <0.0001 |
| Radiologic Tests | ||||||||
| Abdominal X-ray | 30,249 (21.4%) | 12,791 (9.1%) | 2.74 (2.68–2.80) | <0.0001 | 4,596 (31.4%) | 21,327 (20.9%) | 1.73 (1.67–1.80) | <0.0001 |
| Barium enema | 23,960 (17.0%) | 5,767 (4.1%) | 4.80 (4.66–4.94) | <0.0001 | 3,625 (24.8%) | 17,663 (17.3%) | 1.57 (1.51–1.64) | <0.0001 |
| Computed tomography, pelvis | 27,900 (19.7%) | 12,666 (9.0%) | 2.50 (2.44–2.56) | <0.0001 | 4,659 (31.8%) | 19,870 (19.4%) | 1.93 (1.86–2.01) | <0.0001 |
| Computed tomography, abdomen | 32,206 (22.8%) | 14,671 (10.4%) | 2.55 (2.49–2.60) | <0.0001 | 5,397 (36.9%) | 22,871 (22.4%) | 2.02 (1.95–2.10) | <0.0001 |
| Magnetic resonance imaging, pelvis | 699 (0.5%) | 449 (0.3%) | 1.56 (1.38–1.76) | <0.0001 | 102 (0.7%) | 497 (0.5%) | 1.44 (1.16–1.78) | 0.0009 |
| Magnetic resonance imaging, abdomen | 675 (0.5%) | 317 (0.2%) | 2.13 (1.87–2.44) | <0.0001 | 127 (0.9%) | 476 (0.5%) | 1.87 (1.54–2.28) | <0.0001 |
| Ultrasound, pelvis | 36,797 (26.0%) | 21,194 (15.0%) | 2.00 (1.96–2.03) | <0.0001 | 4,824 (33.0%) | 26,454 (25.9%) | 1.41 (1.36–1.46) | <0.0001 |
| Ultrasound, abdomen | 49,857 (35.3%) | 22,440 (15.9%) | 2.89 (2.84–2.94) | <0.0001 | 7,477 (51.1%) | 35,461 (34.7%) | 1.96 (1.90–2.03) | <0.0001 |
| Upper gastrointestinal series | 18,734 (13.3%) | 5,334 (3.8%) | 3.90 (3.78–4.02) | <0.0001 | 3,232 (22.1%) | 13,166 (12.9%) | 1.92 (1.83–2.00) | <0.0001 |
| Small bowel follow-through | 5,903 (4.2%) | 1,065 (0.8%) | 5.74 (5.38–6.13) | <0.0001 | 1,503 (10.3%) | 3,650 (3.6%) | 3.09 (2.90–3.29) | <0.0001 |
IBS: Irritable bowel syndrome; GI: gastroenterologist; SD: Standard deviation; NA: Not applicable
*
Provider specialty known for 83% of IBS patients