Subject(s)
Cooperative Behavior , Deglutition Disorders/etiology , Diverticulum, Esophageal/diagnostic imaging , Esophageal Neoplasms/diagnostic imaging , Interdisciplinary Communication , Deglutition Disorders/diagnostic imaging , Deglutition Disorders/therapy , Diagnosis, Differential , Diverticulum, Esophageal/therapy , Esophageal Neoplasms/therapy , Esophagoscopy , Gastroesophageal Reflux/diagnostic imaging , Gastroesophageal Reflux/therapy , Humans , RadiographyABSTRACT
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the most common, functional disorder diagnosed by gastroenterologists. It is still unclear whether IBS has a central etiology, e.g., hyperreactivity of the brain, or a peripheral etiology, e.g., stimulation of olfactory/gustatory receptors on enterochromaffin cells, followed by serotonin release and changed gut motility. Testing the odor identification (ID), odor discrimination (DIS) and odor threshold (THR) as well as the total taste and the taste qualities "sweet", "sour", "salty" and "bitter" should be of help for determining the etiology. To our knowledge, this is the first study investigating the olfactory/gustatory function in IBS patients. The olfactory/gustatory function of 43 patients (32 women, 11 men) suffering from IBS as defined by the ROME III criteria was investigated by means of validated tests (Sniffin' Sticks and taste strips). Compared to normative data, scores of THR were decreased and scores of ID and DIS were increased in IBS patients. Additionally, when compared to normative data, there was no difference in the taste function of IBS patients. Assuming that THR reflects more the peripheral olfactory function, whereas ID and DIS are influenced by central activity, and that taste did not differ in IBS patients compared to normative data, this supports the idea of a central etiology of IBS.
Subject(s)
Irritable Bowel Syndrome/complications , Olfaction Disorders/etiology , Taste Disorders/etiology , Adult , Aged , Chi-Square Distribution , Female , Humans , Irritable Bowel Syndrome/physiopathology , Male , Middle Aged , Odorants , Olfaction Disorders/physiopathology , Statistics, Nonparametric , Surveys and Questionnaires , Taste Disorders/physiopathologyABSTRACT
Feelings of stigmatization are an important somatopsychic consequence of psoriasis, affecting the quality of life. It is thus relevant to supplement reliable statements about the detailed changes of stigmatization experience and psoriasis over time. In this study we compared the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI), the 'self-administered PASI' (SPASI) and the 'Questionnaire on Experience with Skin Complaints' of 166 psoriasis patients (64 women, 102 men) in a 1-year follow-up to assess the relation between these factors over time. The results suggest a more pronounced feeling of discrimination in women with no significant somatic differences between gender at the first measurement. In a prospective evaluation we found a clear proportion of 'discordant' courses of these parameters, mainly in women, indicating a contradictory relation of somatic improvement or deterioration vs subjective experience with skin complaints. All in all, these results show a moderate but significant relevance of skin state for feeling of stigmatization over time only in men, thus suggesting a considerable influence of other psychic variables, probably coping skills, especially in women.
