Rationale, development, and design of the Altering Intake, Managing Symptoms (AIMS) dietary intervention for bowel dysfunction in rectal cancer survivors.

PURPOSE: Bowel dysfunction is a common, persistent long-term effect of treatment for rectal cancer survivors. Survivors often use dietary modifications to maintain bowel control. There are few evidence-based interventions to guide survivors on appropriate diet modifications for bowel symptom management. The purpose of this paper is to describe the development and design of the Altering Intake, Managing Symptoms (AIMS) intervention to support bowel dysfunction management in rectal cancer survivors. METHODS: The AIMS intervention is a ten-session, telephone-based diet behavior change intervention delivered by trained health coaches. It uses dietary recall, participant-completed food and symptom diaries, and health coaching guided by motivational interviewing to promote bowel symptom management and improved diet quality. Based on the Chronic Care Self-Management Model (CCM), the AIMS Intervention is designed to improve self-efficacy and self-management of bowel symptoms by coaching survivors to appropriately modify their diets through goal setting, self-monitoring, and problem-solving. The intervention targets survivors with stage I-III rectosigmoid colon/rectum cancer who are 6 months post-treatment, 21 years and older, and English-speaking. CONCLUSIONS: The design and development process described in this paper provides an overview and underscores the potential of the AIMS intervention to positively impact the quality of long-term survivorship for rectal cancer survivors. An ongoing pilot study will inform the design and development of future multi-site Phase II and III randomized trials.

Colonic and anorectal motility testing in the high-resolution era.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The past few years have seen an increase in the number of research and clinical groups around the world using high-resolution manometry (HRM) to record contractile activity in the anorectum and colon. Yet despite the uptake and growing number of publications, the clinical utility and potential advantages over traditional manometry remain undetermined. RECENT FINDINGS: Nearly all of the publications in the field of anorectal and colonic HRM have been published within the last 3 years. These studies have included some data on normal ranges in healthy adults, and abnormalities in patient groups with constipation or fecal incontinence, anal fissure, perineal descent, rectal cancer, and Hirschsprung's disease. Most of the studies have been conducted on adults, with only three published studies in pediatric populations. Very few studies have attempted to show advantages of HRM over traditional manometry SUMMARY: High-resolution anorectal and colonic manometry provide a more comprehensive characterization of motility patterns and coordinated activity; this may help to improve our understanding of the normal physiology and pathophysiology in these regions. To date, however, no published study has conclusively demonstrated a clinical, diagnostic, or interventional advantage over conventional manometry.

[FUNCTIONAL BLOATING, CONSTIPATION AND DIARRHEA].

Functional disorders and diseases are usually diagnosed by exclusion when there is no clear presence of inflammatory, anatomic, metabolic, or neoplastic processes which would explain the symptoms and difficulties of the patient. The Rome III Diagnostic Criteria for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders (FGID) are used in clinical and scientific medicine. Functional disorders of the upper gastrointestinal system in adults are classified into six groups. Group C are functional bowel disorders which include irritable bowel syndrome (C1), functional bloating (C2), functional constipation (C3) and functional diarrhea (4). The symptoms of functional gastrointestinal disorders are often a combination of disrupted physiological functions, such as an increase in motor reactivity of the intestine, visceral hypersensitivity, impaired immune functions and inflammatory intestinal mucosa followed by change in the intestinal bacterial flora and disrupted central nervous system-enteric nervous system regulation because of exposure to different psychosocial and sociocultural factors. The symptoms must be present for at least six months before clinical manifestation of the disease and also must be currently present and diagnostically confirmed in the last three months. Diagnostic procedures are targeted individually, depending on the patient age, nature of symptoms, and other clinical and laboratory characteristics. Treatment is based on health education, nutrition counseling, medication and psychological support.

Impact of functional gastrointestinal disorders on survival in the community.

OBJECTIVES: Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) comprise a constellation of symptoms that have no identifiable structural or biochemical abnormality. In view of the lack of data from large-scale population-based studies evaluating the effects of these disorders on survival, we aimed to examine whether FGIDs are associated with impaired survival. METHODS: Between 1988 and 1993, valid self-report questionnaires that recorded gastrointestinal symptoms required for the diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), chronic constipation, chronic diarrhea, dyspepsia, and abdominal pain were mailed to randomly selected cohorts of Olmsted County, Minnesota residents. Minnesota administrative death records were used to identify which of the survey respondents had died over the follow-up period (through April 2008). The association between survival and each FGID was assessed using proportional hazards regression models with univariate and adjusted hazard ratios (HRs, 95% confidence intervals (CIs)), adjusting for age at time of survey, gender, smoking, alcohol, marital status, and Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI). RESULTS: Of the 5,262 randomly selected eligible subjects who received a questionnaire, a total of 4,176 responded to the surveys (overall response rate 79%). From these respondents, 243 subjects were excluded because of lack of research authorization (or were registered solely at a different medical institution in Olmsted County, MN), resulting in 3,933 eligible subjects for analysis (eligible response rate 75%); 10% reported symptoms of IBS; 16% chronic constipation; 18% chronic diarrhea; 2% dyspepsia; and 15% abdominal pain. At baseline, the mean (s.d.) age was 54 (18) years, and 52% were female. No association with overall survival was detected for IBS (HR=1.06 (95% CI: 0.86-1.32)), chronic diarrhea (HR=1.03 (95% CI: 0.90-1.19)), abdominal pain (HR=1.09 (95% CI: 0.92-1.30)), or dyspepsia (HR=1.08 (95% CI: 0.58-2.02)). Reporting symptoms of chronic constipation was associated with poorer survival (HR=1.23 (95% CI: 1.07-1.42)). This association remained significant after adjusting for the CCI (HR=1.19 (95% CI: 1.03-1.37)). CONCLUSIONS: In this large population-based cohort study with over 30,000 person-years of follow-up, no significant association was observed between survival and IBS, chronic diarrhea, dyspepsia, or abdominal pain. Furthermore, no association was found between increasing burden of FGIDs and survival. However, in contrast to these other FGIDs, subjects with symptoms of chronic constipation were found to be at increased risk of poorer survival. Further investigation is required to determine the cause of this observed association.

Pain symptoms and stooling patterns do not drive diagnostic costs for children with functional abdominal pain and irritable bowel syndrome in primary or tertiary care.

OBJECTIVE: The objectives of this study were to (1) compare the cost of medical evaluation for children with functional abdominal pain or irritable bowel syndrome brought to a pediatric gastroenterologist versus children who remained in the care of their pediatrician, (2) compare symptom characteristics for the children in primary versus tertiary care, and (3) examine if symptom characteristics predicted the cost of medical evaluation. METHODS: Eighty-nine children aged 7 to 10 years with functional abdominal pain or irritable bowel syndrome seen by a gastroenterologist (n = 46) or seen only by a pediatrician (n = 43) completed daily pain and stool diaries for 2 weeks. Mothers provided retrospective reports of their children's symptoms in the previous year. Cost of medical evaluation was calculated via chart review of diagnostic tests and application of prices as if the patients were self-pay. RESULTS: Child-reported diary data reflected no significant group differences with respect to pain, interference with activities, or stool characteristics. In contrast, mothers of children evaluated by a gastroenterologist viewed their children as having higher maximum pain intensity in the previous year. Excluding endoscopy costs, cost of medical evaluation was fivefold higher for children evaluated by a gastroenterologist, with higher cost across blood work, stool studies, breath testing, and diagnostic imaging. Symptom characteristics did not predict cost of care for either group. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the lack of difference in symptom characteristics between children in primary and tertiary care, a notable differential in cost of evaluation exists in accordance with level of care. Symptom characteristics do not seem to drive diagnostic evaluation in either primary or tertiary care. Given the lack of differences in child-reported symptoms and the maternal perspective that children evaluated by a gastroenterologist had more severe pain, we speculate that parent perception of child symptoms may be a primary factor in seeking tertiary care.

Abdominal bloating in employed adults: prevalence, risk factors, and association with other bowel disorders.

UNLABELLED: BACKGROUND Bloating is common, but its significance as a marker of underlying disease has not been defined. AND AIMS: We report on risk factors for bloating, its relationship to physical activity and quality of life (QOL), and its predictive value for functional bowel disorders. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional population-based study of 1,069 employees of the Veterans Affairs Black Hills Health Care System. The validated Bowel Disease Questionnaire was used to identify subjects with abdominal bloating and other bowel disorders. The association of bloating with QOL was assessed using the SF36 (Short-Form 36) questionnaire. Physical activity was assessed using the modified Baecke questionnaire. RESULTS: The response rate was 72% (723 of 1,069). Bloating was reported by 21% of all subjects (95% confidence interval [CI] 17.7-23.7), 64% with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), 35% with non-IBS constipation, 23% with non-IBS diarrhea, and 42% with dyspepsia. Functional bloating (i.e., bloating in the absence of other bowel disorders) was reported by 7% of subjects (95% CI 5.2-9.0). Of those with bloating, 28% had IBS, 25% non-IBS constipation, 8% non-IBS diarrhea, and 30% dyspepsia. The positive and negative predictive values of bloating in the diagnosis of functional bowel disorder were 66% and 87%, respectively. The only risk factors were smoking and high-dose aspirin. Bloating was not associated with physical activity. QOL on all subscales of SF36 was lower in subjects with bloating than those without bloating. CONCLUSIONS: Bloating is a common symptom in otherwise healthy adults, and is often associated with but not predictive of functional bowel disorders. Smoking and high-dose aspirin are associated with bloating while physical activity is not.

Irritable bowel syndrome and the Rome III criteria: for better or for worse?

The paper by Sperber et al. in this issue is an early evaluation of the Rome III criteria against the Rome II criteria for irritable bowel syndrome that throws up several important observations. A three to four-fold increase was observed in irritable bowel syndrome prevalence with the Rome III criteria. Individuals with the Rome II criteria had more doctor visits, perception of stress and a negative global feeling. There could be a shift of individuals between irritable bowel syndrome and other functional bowel disorder diagnostic groups such as functional constipation and functional bloating. In this review, it is suggested that rigid application of the symptom frequency and duration requirements of the older Rome criteria could have introduced a selection bias for patients with greater psychological disturbance, and that this could have impacted negatively on our perception and management of irritable bowel syndrome. The findings of Sperber et al. suggest that the new Rome III criteria may enable us to pay more attention to the average irritable bowel syndrome patient we see in our clinics as opposed to the chronically severe patient. It is proposed that improved management of our average patient may translate into better outcomes in terms of reduction in specialist referral, unnecessary surgery and potentially harmful alternative treatments.

Intestinal gas retention in patients with idiopathic slow-transit constipation.

Patients with slow-transit constipation (STC) have delayed colonic transit for solid und liquid bowel contents but intestinal gas handling has not been studied so far. Different nutrients influence motor and sensory gut function. We hypothesized that, in patients with STC, alteration of regulatory mechanisms may result in impaired intestinal gas dynamics. On 3 separate days, validated gas challenge was performed in 10 STC patients and 10 volunteers during duodenal saline, lipids, or intravenous glucose. During saline only 60% +/- 8% of gas was cleared by STC patients after 60-min gas infusion, vs. 91% +/- 2% by controls (P < 0.001). Acute hyperglycemia or lipids did not change intestinal gas dynamics in these patients (saline infusion), but compared to healthy subjects, significant intestinal gas retention occurred. In STC, disturbances of intestinal gas dynamics include basal intestinal gas retention, and this is virtually not affected by acute hyperglycemia or duodenal lipids.

[Therapy of functional bowel disorders]. / Therapie funktioneller Darmbeschwerden.

The irritable bowel syndrome is the most frequent and most important functional bowel disease. It is characterized by a combination of abdominal pain, alterations of bowel habits (diarrhea, constipation) and meteorism. Probably, visceral hypersensitivity, motility disturbances, food intolerance, immunologic and microbiologic alterations and psychosomatic influences contribute to symptoms. In a relevant subgroup of patients the disease is triggered by bacterial infection. These patients usually have diarrhea-predominant disease. Irritable bowel syndrome can be diagnosed if typical symptoms are present and after relevant organic differential diagnoses have been excluded by selective biochemical investigations, abdominal ultrasonography and, if applicable, by colonoscopy. These diagnostic procedures are an important basis for therapeutic interventions and need to be complemented by clear information about the diagnosis and the benign long-term course of the disease. Medical therapy concentrates on treatment of predominant symptoms, i.e. pain, diarrhea, constipation and meteorism.

[Functional and inflammatory bowel disorders]. / Funktionelle und entzündliche Darmerkrankungen.

BACKGROUND: Current investigations suggest that postinflammatory mechanisms might induce subtle changes in the mucosa and enteric nervous system which cannot be readily detected by routine diagnostic measures in subgroups of functional bowel disorders, especially in postinfectious irritable bowel syndrome (PI-IBS). DEFINITION OF PI-IBS: Characteristic of IBS is a symptom cluster with abdominal pain/discomfort and altered bowel movement without pathologic findings during routine work-up. PI-IBS is characterized by acute onset of symptoms, fever, vomiting, diarrhea and/or positive stool culture. EPIDEMIOLOGY: The incidence of PI-IBS is 10-17% in unselected IBS patients of whom 70% develop diarrhea, 26% alternating bowel movement and 8% constipation. PATHOPHYSIOLOGY: Initial gastrointestinal infections might induce subtle ongoing inflammation with consecutive altered mucosal function. Pathomechanisms include mutations within the interleukin-(IL-) 10 promoter polymorphism, hyperplasia of specialized cells including Paneth and enteroendocrine cells (EC) through cytokines as well as inflammatory-mediated modulation of neurones and neurotransmitters within the enteric nervous system. DIAGNOSIS, DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS, AND THERAPY: It is essential to exclude alarm symptoms. IBS can be positively diagnosed with a sensitivity and specificity of > 90% by standardized questionnaires. Indications of PI-IBS are the acute onset of symptoms, fever, vomiting, diarrhea and/or positive stool culture. Differential diagnoses include lactose intolerance, small bowel bacterial overgrowth, bile acid malabsorption, celiac disease, giardiasis, chronic inflammatory bowel disease, collagenous colitis, and diverticulitis. Therapeutic options in PI-IBS remain symptomatic. So far, no specific anti-inflammatory treatment modalities are available.

Laparoscopic subtotal colectomy for colonic inertia.

Colonic inertia is an uncommon condition, usually occurring in women in the third decade of life. Severity of symptoms may lead some patients to a surgical consultation. This is a retrospective review of 14 patients who underwent laparoscopic subtotal colectomy for colonic inertia, performed by a single surgeon from August 1993 to November 2002. The mean age of the patients was 38.5 years (range 26-50 years); 93% of the patients were women. The common presenting symptoms included abdominal pain (93%), bloating (100%), constipation (100%), and nausea (57%). Median duration of symptoms before surgery was 4.5 years (range 1-30 years). Subtotal colectomy was completed laparoscopically in 13 patients. There was one conversion (7%) because of adhesions. Eleven patients (78.6%) had undergone previous abdominal surgery. The mean operating room time was 153 minutes (range 113-210 minutes). The median time to full bowel action was 2 days. One patient developed postoperative small bowel obstruction that required open exploration. Complete follow-up was available for 11 patients at a median follow-up of 18 months (range 2-96 months). Ninety-one percent of the patients reported excellent satisfaction with surgery, and their bowel movement frequency changed from 1.2 (+/-0.2) per week preoperatives to 17.2 (+/-2.9) per week postoperatively (P < 0.001). Three patients (27%) continued to report abdominal pain and 3 patients (27%) continued to require laxatives postoperatively. Laparoscopic subtotal colectomy provides excellent symptom relief in patients with colonic inertia who do not respond to medical measures.

[Chronic abdominal pain--internistic-psychosomatic aspects]. / Bauchschmerz aus internistisch-psychosomatischer Sicht. Gestresster Magen--gereizter Darm?

Abdominal pain is considered to be chronic when it persists for at least three months or when a patient experiences such pain for a total of three months during the course of a year. Pathophysiologically, nociceptive/neuropathic functional pain syndrome, mental disorders with the cardinal symptom of chronic pain, and mixed forms can be distinguished. In 50% of the patients, the cause of chronic abdominal pain is a functional gastrointestinal disorder e.g. functional dyspepsia irritable bowel syndrome. On the basis of a structured pain history, a physical examination and a basic "technical" diagnostic program (laboratory investigations, abdominal ultrasonography, Esophagogastroduodenoscopy, colonoscopy), correct assignment to one of the above-mentioned can be achieved in most of the cases.

Síndrome do ceco móvel: mito ou realidade? / Mobile cecum syndrome: myth or reality?

Objetivo: Esse estudo foi desenvolvido para avaliar o efeito da cecopexia no tratamento da dor abdominal intermitente de causa obscura, associada a cólica intestinal, distensão abdominal, constipação e/ou diarréia em pacientes com diagnóstico de síndrome do cólon irritável e com ceco móvel. Pacientes e métodos:No período compreendido entre junho de 1996 e fevereiro de 2004, todos os pacientes atendidos em uma clínica privada com dor abdominal, distensão,cólica, constipação e/ou diarréia de etiologia obscura, mas com diagnóstico prévio de síndrome do cólon irritável ou de outras doenças não confirmadas ou que se confirmadas o tratamento não foi acompanhado de alívio dos sintomas e que, após avaliação clínica, com o diagnóstico provável de ceco móvel, foram selecionados ara o estudo. Trinta e quatro pacientes (8 homens;26 mulheres-idade média de 39,6anos),97por cento com queixa de distensão abdominal, 76por cento com queixa de dor, 50por cento com constipação e 42por cento com diarréia, fazendo parte do grupo de estudo, foram programados para operação eletiva e fixação do ceco móvel, confirmado por exame radiológico em 16 pacientes. Onze pacientes recusaram o tratamento operatório, 4 deles aguardam operação e 19 foram operados. A operação constou da fixação do ceco e o cólon ascendente, quando foi o caso,na goteira parieto-cólica direita, após abertura linear do peritônio parietal para se construir uma "calha" onde foi deitado o segmento móvel do cólon direito e suturado ao folheto superior do peritônio parietal aberto.Resultados:Os dezenove pacientes operados-9 com exame radiológico prévio e 10 sem a radiografia-tinham ceco móvel. Todos estão sendo seguidos há 72 meses (Média de 19meses)sem os sintomas que motivaram o tratamento. Todos os 15 pacientes não operados (7 com exames radiológicos e 8 sem)estão sendo acompanhados há 72 meses (media21meses) com as mesmas queixas que motivaram a primeira consulta. Conclusão:Nessa série de 34 pacientes-79,4por cento dos quais com diagnóstico de síndrome do cólon irritável- 19(56por cento)foram operados para a fixação do ceco móvel e ficaram livres dos sintomas abdominais, o que indica que todos os pacientes com os sintomas abdominais intermitentes aqui referidos e de causa obscura devem ser investigados com a suspeita de ceco móvel e programados para a cecopexia.

Conceitos atuais em síndrome do intestino irritável / Current concepts in irritable bowel syndrome

A Síndrome do Intestino Irritável (SII) é uma doença gastrointestinal funcional caracterizada por dor ou desconforto abdominal associados a alterações na característica das evacuações, muito frequente no mundo todo. Ocorre por uma complexa conjunção de mecanismos, porém alterações na motilidade intestinal e hiperalgesia visceral são fatores preponderantes. A influência dos fatores psicológicos é notável nos doentes com SII. Atualmente, seu diagnóstico é feito com base em critérios clínicos, denominados de Roma II. O tratamento é determinado pelo tipo e intensidade dos sintomas, bem como pela abordagem psico-social. A variedade de sintomas presentes, a compreensão incompleta da fisiopatologia da doença, as complexas interações entre os sistemas nervosos central e entérico, fazem com que seja freqüente a utilização simultânea de diferentes medicamentos para o tratamento.

The irritable bowel syndrome is a functional gastrointestinal disease, which is characterized by abdominal pain or discomfort associated to a change in bowel habits. It is very frequent in the whole world, and occurs due to a complex mechanism, in whichmotility alterations and visceral hypersensitivity are prominentfeatures. Also, the influence of psychosocial factors is noteworthy. Currently the diagnosis is made on the basis of clinical parameters called Rome II criteria. The treatment is based on the type and severity of symptoms, as well by the psychosocial approach. The variety of symptoms, the incompleteunderstanding of the pathophisiology and the complex interactions between the central and enteric nervous system,often cause the patient to take more than one medicine for thetreatment.