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Abdominal Pain Severity Is Mainly Associated with Bloating Severity in Patients with Functional Bowel Disorders and Functional Abdominal Pain

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Abstract

Purpose

Abdominal pain is a cardinal sign of functional bowel disorders (FBD), in favor of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). However, the determinants of abdominal pain severity (APS) are unknown. The present study aimed to search the relationships between APS and demographic, psychological, and clinical parameters in tertiary care FBD outpatients.

Patients and Methods

In this retrospective study, we included 2043 new outpatients with FBD or functional abdominal pain. They fulfilled the Rome III questionnaire, psychological evaluation, and four 10-points Likert scale for the perceived severity of constipation, diarrhea, bloating, and abdominal pain. Linear regression was performed for each phenotype to model the severity of abdominal pain with demographic, psychological parameters, and symptoms severity.

Results

APS was positively associated with bloating severity in all phenotypes, but APS was also associated with other variables according to gender and phenotype. APS was negatively associated with age and positively with depression, constipation severity, and diarrhea severity in female patients. In male patients, APS was associated with state anxiety, constipation severity, and diarrhea severity. APS severity was associated with bloating severity and transit severity in IBS patients, while in non-IBS patients, APS was only associated with bloating severity.

Conclusion

Perceived abdominal pain severity is always associated with perceived bloating severity in FBD and FAP patients.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Gastroenterology Department, CEFRED (Centre D’Exploration Fonctionnelle Et de Rééducation Digestive), Avicenne Hospital, 125, rue de Stalingrad, 93009, Bobigny Cedex, France

    David Deutsch, Michel Bouchoucha, Julien Uzan, Jean-Jacques Raynaud, Jean-Marc Sabate & Robert Benamouzig

  2. Physiology Department, Université de Paris, Paris, France

    Michel Bouchoucha

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  1. David Deutsch
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  2. Michel Bouchoucha
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Contributions

Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work: BOUCHOUCHA, DEUTSCH. Drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content: BOUCHOUCHA, SABATE, UZAN. Final approval of the version to be published: BOUCHOUCHA, DEUTSCH, UZAN, RAYNAUD, SABATE, BENAMOUZIG. Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved: BOUCHOUCHA, DEUTSCH, UZAN, RAYNAUD, SABATE, BENAMOUZIG.

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Correspondence to Michel Bouchoucha.

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10620_2021_7175_MOESM1_ESM.jpg

Flowchart of patient selection. Abbreviations: FGID: Functional Gastrointestinal disorders; FBD: Functional Bowel Disorders; FAP: Functional Abdominal Pain (JPG 327 kb)

Supplementary file2 (DOCX 25 kb)

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Deutsch, D., Bouchoucha, M., Uzan, J. et al. Abdominal Pain Severity Is Mainly Associated with Bloating Severity in Patients with Functional Bowel Disorders and Functional Abdominal Pain. Dig Dis Sci 67, 3026–3035 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10620-021-07175-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10620-021-07175-z

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