If you are a sufferer of IBS, the probable answer to that question was, 'Hell yes!' Enough and indeed too much, in fact. Anyone experiencing the disagreeable range of symptoms which comprise IBS ( pain, stool frequency alterations, mucus, bloating, distension, nausea, fatigue - and the rest!1 ), may feel that they spend enough time thinking about their ailment, without wanting to spend any more time talking and reading about it.
A recent study seems to dispute such an assertion, however. Ringstrom et al, in a study at the University of Gothenburg, conducted a study involving twelve patients over a period of approximately twelve months. The patients were initially rated on such measures as levels of self-perceived knowledge about IBS, their satisfaction with that, Soynut butter their level of IBS symptomaticity and their HRQOL (health related quality of life.) The 'educational intervention' itself consisted of six meetings with various health professionals during which IBS was discussed with them, educational materials were handed out and they could chat with the other patients. After the study they completed questionnaires measuring the original parameters of IBS knowledge etc, at three, six and twelve months after the start of the study.
The interesting thing is that, on the whole, they seemed to improve regarding every parameter. (This was not 'statistically significant' in every case, however.) The improvement regarding the level of knowledge, and satisfaction with that knowledge, seems intuitive enough. You educate people about their condition, they gain knowledge, and it's good to have knowledge about your condition if it helps you manage it.
However personally I was surprised to read about the reduction in severity of IBS symptoms and the more general 'health related quality of life'. Perhaps I shouldn't be. We laypeople may well labour under all kinds of misapprehensions about our health, where correct information and informed advice might help us deal with IBS symptoms more effectively. Perhaps that management actually leads to a reduction in symptoms?
But what I found most interesting was, that according to Ringstrom et al, 'for some patients this was the first time talking to anyone, except for healthcare providers, about their symptoms and difficulties.'2 However during the intervention they had the opportunity to discuss IBS with other sufferers, and as Ringstrom et al put it, to 'model' successful strategies for dealing with IBS for each other. This makes the impressive results quite credible to me (although I feel sad for anyone struggling alone without anyone really to talk to about their condition.)
What lessons can we take from this study? I think for me, it suggests you can never know too much about your condition. It also reinforces for me the importance of not being isolated with your condition. Talk, communicate, find a self-help group, really talk honestly to your doctor, your counselor, other sufferers. IBS is enough of a burden to carry without doing it alone.
1. Tresca, A.J. http://ibdcrohns.about.com/cs/ibs/a/romecriteria.htm
2. Gisela and Magnus Simren. "Development of an educational intervention for patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) - a pilot study.." BMC Gastroenterology 9 (February 2009): 10+.
Copyright Ollie Hicks, 2009.
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