Question

Submit a 350-500 word paper on irritable bowel syndrome. Discuss the pathophysiology, risk factors, signs and symptoms, treatment options, and preventive measures.

Answer 1

Irritable bowel syndrome: is defined as the common disease which is the functional bowel disorder  which is charecterised by chronic or recurrent abdominal pain. The causes of this disease is not known but it has negatively affects quality of life and may miss school or work.

Pathophysiology:   

The exact cause behind the chronic disease is still unknown. There are some factors which can cause this disease.

• Contractions in the intestines: The intestinal walls are lines with muscles that prouces the peristalsis. Patients with IBS have stronger and long lasting contractions wich causes gastric problems like bloating or diarrhoea. A weak intestinal contraction causes dry and hard stools.
• The external factors like food, , environmental, economic, and mental factors can also aggrevate the IBS symptoms.

Risk factors: The following are the risk factors.

• Gender: women are more likely to get the disease than men
• Age: most likely in all ages most likely in the teens upto age of 40 years.
• Family history: Looks like it is more common if there is a family history of the disease.
• Emotional troubles: Some people who have stress or mental disorer or a traumatic event in their lives can cause irritable bowel syndrome.
• Foods: some foods can aggrevate this problem. Foods like high sugar content, less fibre foods, carbonated drinks,fatty foods, alcohol.
• Medications: medications like antibiotics, anti depressants, drugs with sorbitol cause cuase bowel irritations.

Signs and symptoms:

The following are the signs and symptoms of Irritable bowel syndrome.

• Stomach pain or cramps
• Bloating
• Diarrhoea
• Constipation
• Flatulence
• feeling fatigue or tired
• Nauseated
• mucus in the stool

Treatment : Becuase there is no specific cause treatment is mainly on managing the symptoms.

• Dietary changes: Increase fibre rich foods in the diet and reduce the fatty foods
• Medications : take medications like fibre supplements, medications to control diaarhoea, anti spasmodic medications.

Preventive measures:

The preventive measures is mailny based on the factors that influence this disease.

• In case of stress it is better to control the stress levels
• Couselling is mostly required for people who has some traumatic expriences
• dietary control is important as to control the symptoms which mainly includes fibre rich diet, avioding of alcohol or carbonated drinks specially in the nights, avioding fatty rich foods

All these measures can help in controlling the disease.