[ overview on irritable bowel syndrome and new treatments]

ABSTRACT

Irritable bowel syndrome [IBS] is one of the most common functional gastrointestinal disorders characterized by abdominal pain/discomfort in association with altered bowel habits in the absence of any organic cause. The pathophysiology of IBS remains uncertain but hereditary and environmental factors are likely to have a role. The diagnosis of IBS is currently based on the ROME III symptom-based criteria. IBS is subtyped based on predominant bowel habit and pharmacologic treatment is according to this classification, too. In addition to pharmacologic agents, effective patient-physician relationship, diet and psychological treatment are important in management. Nowadays, with improvement in understanding the pathopysiology of IBS, many therapeutic modalities have introduced and new drugs with novel mechanism of action will hopefully be developed