Impact of functional gastrointestinal disorders on survival in the community.

Objectives: Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) comprise a constellation of symptoms that have no identifiable structural or biochemical abnormality. In view of the lack of data from large-scale population-based studies evaluating the effects of these disorders on survival, we aimed to examine whether FGIDs are associated with impaired survival.

Methods: Between 1988 and 1993, valid self-report questionnaires that recorded gastrointestinal symptoms required for the diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), chronic constipation, chronic diarrhea, dyspepsia, and abdominal pain were mailed to randomly selected cohorts of Olmsted County, Minnesota residents.

Functional Dyspepsia: A New Rome III Paradigm.

Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a condition commonly seen in gastroenterological practice. With the introduction of Rome III criteria in 2006, a new approach for categorizing patients has been recommended. The diagnostic criteria suggest that meal-related and pain-predominant symptom groupings that presumably have distinct pathophysiologic mechanisms and potentially different therapeutic targets exist.

Natural history of functional gastrointestinal disorders: a 12-year longitudinal population-based study.

Background & Aims: Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGID) are common in the community. The natural history of FGID is unknown because of a lack of prospective population-based studies and the indistinct nature of the phenotype. We sought to report the natural history of FGID in a US population.

Treatment of functional dyspepsia.

Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a common reason a patient presents with upper gastrointestinal symptoms for medical care. Although treatment of FD remains expensive, the agents are rarely used in a systematic manner; the majority of treatments are empirical and the results short lived once therapy is ceased. This is partly due to the lack of consistent pathophysiologic markers in FD, so therapy is symptom driven.

Psychosocial risk factors for the onset of abdominal pain. Results from a large prospective population-based study.

Objective: To determine the psychosocial risk factors for the development of abdominal pain and to determine whether, in those people who consulted, symptoms had been attributed to an organic cause.

Design: Prospective population-based postal survey with follow-up survey at 12 months.

Setting: A mixed sociodemographic suburban area of Manchester, UK.