Description and comparison of emotional factors in patients with irritable bowel syndrome and gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Introduction: Psychological and emotional factors influence human health to a considerable extent. Judging from our clinical experience, there seemed to exist a relationship between the intensity of symptoms and the presence of circumstances which pose a psychological burden to patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Aim of study: Comparison of personality profiles of patients with IBS and GERD and identification of psychological mechanisms which influence their physical and mental well-being. Material and methods: 39 patients with IBS and 40 patients with GERD were included in the study. The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory questionnaire (MMPI) adapted into Polish by M. Matkowski was used to assessed the psychological profile of study participants. Results: Both study groups were found to have higher than expected values on the "Hypochondria", "Hysteria", and "Psychastenia" scales. Comparison of the values on each of the scales of the "neurotic triad" has demonstrated that the somatization phenomenon occurred in more than half of the study participants (56.4% of IBS patients and 55% of GERD patients). Conclusions: There is a remarkable resemblance in the psychological profile of both groups. A similar defence mechanism (conversion- somatization) has been detected in patients with both IBS and GERD. Emotional factors have a clear impact on both conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]