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Even IBS patients who have not responded to medications or dietary changes, and have difficulty attending therapist-driven behaviour programs, "should not get discouraged that they have to live like prisoners in their houses," Dr Jeffrey M. Lackner told Reuters Health.
A growing body of literature indicates that IBS sufferers can learn very structured skills to manage bowel problems, added Lackner, of the University at Buffalo in New York.
The simple, self-care strategies learned through a home-based program - such as jotting down "trigger foods," keeping a diary of symptoms and managing stress - may be as effective as more traditional, therapist-directed behaviour therapy, he and colleagues have found.
Tests show programme effective
People living with the altered bowel habits, abdominal pain, and discomfort of IBS are prime candidates for disease-management behaviour therapy, especially since few medications are available to effectively treat IBS. However, traditional cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) programs are usually time-consuming and require multiple visits to therapists - an aspect that makes participation difficult for many IBS patients.
Lackner's team compared the efficacy of a longer and a shorter CBT program, and no intervention, among 75 patients who had IBS for more than 16 years on average.
A third of the participants followed a 10-week therapist-administered program, another third followed a four-week self-administered but therapist-managed program, and a third was wait-listed for behaviour therapy (the control group), the researchers report.
Their analysis, conducted two weeks after the end of the longer intervention, showed the self-administered program was equally effective at relieving abdominal pain and bowel symptoms as the longer therapist-driven program. Both programs were superior to no intervention.
The investigators hope to "expand and replicate" these findings in a multi-site trial in a larger and more diverse patient population, Lackner said. – (Reuters Health)
July 2008
Read more:
Treating mind eases IBS
