Volume 26, Issue 129, November 2022

The prevalence of irritable bowel syndrome among medical students and interns at Tabuk University

Hyder Osman Mirghani¹, Majed Mohammed Alshehri^2♦, Jalawi Talal A Alotaibi², Faisal Shiraz M Alharthi², Abdulaziz Abdullah Albalawi², Mohammed Aali Alghamdi², Abdulrahman Jawdat Albalawi², Yazeed Hamdan O Alwabisi², Bander Mohammed Abu Murad², Waleed Farhan Alshammari², Mohammed Ibrahim Fareed Bin Ibrahim³

¹Professor of Medicine and Endocrine, Medicine Department, College of Medicine, Tabuk University, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia
²Medical intern, Tabuk University, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia
³Medical student, Tabuk University, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia

^♦Corresponding author
Medical intern, Tabuk University, King Faisal Road, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia

ABSTRACT

Objectives: This study was conducted among medical students and interns at Tabuk University, Saudi Arabia to estimate irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) prevalence and explores its risk factors. Methods: Using a questionnaire this cross-sectional study collected data regarding the participants’ characteristics, red flag signs of colorectal cancer, Rome III criteria, HADS-A questionnaire and lifestyle habits. Results: Out of 215 participants, 22.8% had IBS. Univariate analysis showed significant association between IBS and female gender (p=0.007), family history of IBS (p<0.001) and celiac disease (p=0.002), sleep duration<6 hours/day (p<0.001) and anxiety disorder (p<0.001). Multivariate analysis showed significantly increased likelihood of IBS with family history of IBS (OR: 3.583, 95% CI: 1.518─8.460, p=0.004) and celiac disease (OR: 3.896, 95% CI: 1.124─13.507, p=0.032), sleeping<6 hours/day (OR: 11.288, 95% CI: 2.956─43.106, p<0.001) and having higher HADS-A score (for each increase by one point: OR: 1.194, 95% CI: 1.068─1.336, p=0.002). Conclusions: Prevalence of IBS was 22.8% and the detected independent preventable risk factors were sleeping<6 hours/day and having an anxiety disorder. Future studies should assess IBS impact on academic achievements and clinical performance of students and healthcare workers.

Keywords: Irritable bowel syndrome, medical student, prevalence, risk factors

Medical Science, 2022, 26, ms497e2581

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.54905/disssi/v26i129/ms497e2581

Published: 27 November 2022