Gastrointestinal symptoms, depression and trait anxiety in young adults seeking psychiatric care

• Background and aim: Patients with functional gastrointestinal (GI) disorders have a high psychiatric co-morbidity, especially for mood and anxiety disorders. This study aimed to investigate and characterise GI symptoms in relation to depressive symptoms and trait anxiety in a well-defined population of young adult outpatients seeking psychiatric care.Material and methods: Patients, aged 18-25 years from the Uppsala Psychiatric Patient Samples (UPP) cohort seeking psychiatric care for primarily mood and anxiety disorders (n=491) were compared with healthy controls (n=85) for GI symptoms (measured using the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale for Irritable Bowel Syndrome, GSRS-IBS and depressive symptoms (measured using the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale – Self-Assessment, MADRS-S. Personality traits were assessed using the Swedish Universities Scales of Personality (SSP), in which three anxiety-related personality traits (stress susceptibility, psychic trait anxiety somatic trait anxiety) were assessed.Results: Patients, both on psychotropic medication and those not currently on psychotropic medication reported more GI symptoms than controls (median 30 vs. 22, p<0.001). GI symptom burden was higher in women than men (median 32 vs. 28, p<0.001). A principal component analysis produced a six-factor structure explaining 63% of the total variance in the data set. A cluster analysis was performed that allowed the identification of six cluster groups, characterised by the varying levels of these factors. The total GSRS-IBS score significantly correlated with depressive symptom severity (r=0.391, p<0.001), a relationship that remained after adjusting for possible confounders (sex, body mass index, bulimia). The total GSRS-IBS score correlated with the three SSP subscales: somatic trait anxiety (r=0.313, p<0.001), psychic trait anxiety (r=0.147, p=0.001) and stress susceptibility (r=0.233, p<0.001).Conclusion: GI symptoms are highly prevalent in young adult psychiatric outpatients compared with controls, regardless of whether the patient is currently on psychotropic medication or not. Depressive symptom severity and degree of trait anxiety are independently related to the total IBS symptoms score.

Ämnesord

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Klinisk medicin -- Psykiatri (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Clinical Medicine -- Psychiatry (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

IBS

human

mood disorder

depression

anxiety

personality

Psychiatry

Psykiatri

Publikations- och innehållstyp

vet (ämneskategori)

ovr (ämneskategori)