Article of the week: Bladder and bowel: the link between OAB and IBS
Every week the Editor-in-Chief selects the Article of the Week from the current issue of BJUI. The abstract is reproduced below and you can click on the button to read the full article, which is freely available to all readers for at least 30 days from the time of this post.
In addition to the article itself, there is an accompanying editorial written by a prominent member of the urological community. This blog is intended to provoke comment and discussion and we invite you to use the comment tools at the bottom of each post to join the conversation.
If you only have time to read one article this week, it should be this one
Relationship between overactive bladder and irritable bowel syndrome: a large-scale internet survey in Japan using the overactive bladder symptom score and Rome III criteria
Seiji Matsumoto, Kazumi Hashizume, Naoki Wada, Jyunichi Hori, Gaku Tamaki, Masafumi Kita, Tatsuya Iwata and Hidehiro Kakizaki
Asahikawa Medical University, Renal and Urological Surgery, Asahikawa, Hokkaidou, Japan
OBJECTIVE
• To investigate the association between overactive bladder (OAB) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) by using an internet-based survey in Japan.
SUBJECTS AND METHODS
• Questionnaires were sent via the internet to Japanese adults.
• The overactive bladder symptom score was used for screening OAB, and the Japanese version of the Rome III criteria for the diagnosis of IBS was used for screening this syndrome.
RESULTS
• The overall prevalence of OAB and IBS was 9.3% and 21.2%, respectively.
• Among the subjects with OAB, 33.3% had concurrent IBS.
• The prevalence of OAB among men was 9.7% and among women it was 8.9%, while 18.6% of men and 23.9% of women had IBS.
• Concurrent IBS was noted in 32.0% of men and 34.8% of women with OAB.
CONCLUSION
• Taking into account a high rate of concurrent IBS in patients with OAB, it seems to be important for physicians to assess the defaecation habits of patients when diagnosing and treating OAB.
In cases of early detection seek ibs treatment right away.
