A School-Based Study of Irritable Bowel Syndrome in Medical Students in Beijing, China: Prevalence and Some Related Factors

Abstract EN

Purpose.

To investigate the prevalence and some related factors about irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in medical students.

Methods.

A cross-sectional study was carried out from February 2014 to Jun 2014 in Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.

All participants were asked to completed self-administered questionnaires.

Results.

Seven hundred and sixty-seven medical students (23.26±2.88 years, 25.6% males) completed the survey.

The prevalence of IBS was 33.3%, with a high prevalence in women (36.1%).

Among the IBS patients, 112 cases were IBS-M (43.9%) and 77.6% had moderately severe IBS.

There were no statistical differences between control group and IBS patients in anxiety and depression scores (P>0.05).

The total score of Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) was significantly higher for medical students with IBS and 35.5% of IBS patients had severe sleep disorder; the scores of child trauma questionnaire (CTQ) and student-life stress inventory (SLSI) were also higher in IBS patients.

Sex and sleep disorder were independently associated with IBS (OR, 1.914, 95%CI, 1.281–2.860; OR, 1.143, 95%CI, 1.074–1.216).

Conclusion.

Our study has many valuable findings and they may provide valuable suggestions for the necessary intervention and treatment measures towards medical students.