Table 1.
Baseline Demographics and Clinical Characteristics
| Irritable bowel syndrome (n=24) | Healthy controls (n=26) | p value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age (range) | 44 (18 – 70) | 45 (20 – 72) | 0.60 |
| Female gender (%) | 18 (90%) | 19 (83%) | 0.67 |
| Caucasian | 12 (60%) | 13 (57%) | 0.81 |
| Married | 10 (50%) | 12 (52%) | 0.88 |
| At Least Some College Education | 16 (80%) | 23 (100%) | 0.04 |
| Employed full- or part-time | 14 (70%) | 22 (96%) | 0.04 |
| Current Tobacco Use | 3 (15%) | 1 (4.3%) | 0.23 |
| Body mass index (BMI, kg/m2) | 27.7 ±1.1 | 25.8 ±1.4 | 0.31 |
| Bowel symptom Severity [VAS]1 | 5.6 ±0.7 | 1.7 ±0.4 | <0.001 |
| Bowel Symptom Bother [VAS]1 | 5.7 ±0.7 | 1.6 ±0.4 | <0.001 |
| Bowel Symptom Frequency 2 | 6 (0 – 14) | 1 (0 – 5) | <0.001 |
| GSRS-IBS Pain | 6.7 ±3.2 | 2.8 ±1.1 | <0.001 |
| GSRS-IBS Bloat | 8.9 ±4.1 | 4.8 ±2.2 | 0.001 |
| GSRS-IBS Constipation | 4.2 ±2.9 | 2.9 ±1.5 | 0.09 |
| GSRS-IBS Diarrhea | 9.6 ±6.5 | 5.1 ±1.4 | 0.005 |
| HADS: Depression subscale | 3.8 ±2.9 | 2.1 ±1.9 | <0.001 |
| HADS: Anxiety subscale | 8.7 ±4.7 | 4.0 ±3.7 | <0.001 |
| Visceral Sensitivity Index (VSI) | 39.5 ±4.8 | 5.7 ±1.5 | <0.001 |
| Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-15) | 11.6 ±1.0 | 6.3 ±0.9 | <0.001 |
| SF-36 Total | 61.3 ±5.3 | 80.4 ±2.9 | 0.004 |
| Mental subscale | 61.9 ±5.1 | 61.3 ±5.3 | 0.008 |
| Physical subscale | 56.8 ±5.8 | 77.0 ±3.5 | 0.006 |
| IBS-QOL Total | 69.7 ±4.0 | 98.3 ±0.7 | <0.001 |
| WPAI-IBS (Activity impairment, % time) | 33.3% | 2.0% | <0.001 |
| Tricyclic antidepressant use | 6 (25.0%) | 1 (3.8%) | 0.03 |
| Other antidepressant use | 4 (16.7%) | 1 (3.8%) | 0.13 |
| Sleep aide use | 7 (29.2%) | 3 (11.5%) | 0.12 |
1
Measured along a 10-cm Visual Analog Scale (0=“Not severe/bothered at all”, 10 = “Extremely severe/bothered”)