Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of the most common reasons for visiting a gastroenterology clinic. It is marked by abdominal pain or discomfort with bloating and gas and a change in bowel habit between constipation and diarrhoea, without inflammation or a tumour in the bowel.
How is it diagnosed?
Diagnosis rests on the story of your symptoms and an examination, and other diseases are excluded when needed with blood and stool tests. A colonoscopy may be needed if there are warning signs. Not all bloating is IBS: some cases are caused by lactose or fructose intolerance, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), coeliac disease or inflammatory bowel disease.
Signs that call for further tests
- Blood in the stool or black stool.
- Unexplained weight loss.
- Anaemia or low iron.
- Symptoms that start for the first time after the age of fifty.
- Night-time diarrhoea that wakes you, or a family history of colon cancer or inflammatory bowel disease.
What helps?
- Regular meals and noticing the foods that trigger symptoms. A guided diet such as the low-FODMAP diet may help under specialist supervision.
- Adding fibre gradually for constipation, drinking water and exercising.
- Reducing stress and improving sleep, as the gut is closely tied to mood.
- Medicines chosen for the main symptom, prescribed after medical assessment.
The aim is a plan that suits you, eases the symptoms and improves your quality of life, with follow-up if the symptoms change.
The information on this website is for health education and does not replace a medical examination or direct consultation.
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