Quality of life in irritable bowel syndrome, effect of therapy.

Background: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common disease in the general population. Evaluation of IBS symptoms does not cover all the complaints of patients who report restrictions to social life, the need to diet and psychosocial repercussions. Quality of life (QOL) measurement permits a precise approach to patient status.

Methods: The generic QOL questionnaires SF 36 and two validated specific QOL questionnaires--IBSQOL and Functional Digestive Disorders FDDQL--have been used for the evaluation of IBS patient outcome. IBSQOL measures 9 domains and its reliability and validity have been demonstrated. FDDQL measures 8 domains, an international psychometric validation was obtained in French, English and German by comparison with the SF36. The discriminant validity and responsiveness of the FDDQL have been evaluated.

Results: Generic QOL evaluation and specific questionnaires like the FDDQL were able to measure changes in IBS patient status and QOL during several clinical trials.

Conclusion: Specific QOL questionnaires have been validated in IBS patients and are available for controlled studies. Development of effective new drugs are needed for IBS treatment, complete and precise evaluation of outcome will involve QOL analysis in association with specific validated questionnaires.