Irritable Bowel Syndrome
The current definition of Irritable Bowel Syndrome(IBS) is based on the Rome II criteria, which include the following:
(1) abdominal pain or discomfort for at least 12 of the preceding 52 weeks (not necessarily consecutive) and
(2) at least two of the following three criteria: relief of pain/discomfort with defecation, change in the frequency of bowel movements, and change in the consistency of bowel movements.
Although it is known that symptoms may change over time, recent recommendations are that patients with the IBS should be subcategorized using symptom-based criteria into the following three subgroups:
(1) IBS associated with abdominal discomfort, fecal urgency, and diarrhea,
(2) IBS associated with abdominal discomfort, bloating, and constipation, and
(3) IBS alternating between diarrhea and constipation.
Traditionally, practitioners have focused their efforts on treating the individual symptoms of IBS, including diarrhea with one medication, constipation with another medication, and pain relief with an additional medication.With the advent of serotonin receptor agonists and antagonists, multiple symptoms of IBS can be addressed with a single therapeutic agent; therefore, treatment can be approached in a more global manner.
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