Each month, the CDI team rounds up some of the latest #GIcommunity research, news, and trends and highlights how they impact functional GI diagnostics and treatment.
This month, we look at a new meta-analysis on the connection between IBS and other treatable GI conditions, a new study on bloating, a review on the advances in breath testing diagnostics, and the use of virtual reality for IBS education and treatment.
A systematic review and meta-analysis on the prevalence of non-malignant, organic gastrointestinal disorders misdiagnosed as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
According to a new large scale systematic review and meta-analysis, up to 49% of patients with IBS have small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) as well as other treatable GI conditions, including bile acid diarrhea (up to 40%), carbohydrate malabsorptions (up to 54% with lactose malabsorption and 44% with fructose malabsorption), pancreatic exocrine insufficiency (5%) and microscopic colitis (3%). Researchers suggest the importance of testing patients with IBS-like symptoms who do not respond to conventional treatments for IBS.
Nearly 1 in 7 Adults in the U.S. Experienced Bloating in the Past Week
A new large-scale survey to evaluate bloating revealed that nearly 1 in 7 adults in the U.S. experienced the gastrointestinal symptom in the past week. While this is not the first survey on the commonly experienced GI symptom, the study had an extensive population sample (nearly 90,000 U.S. adults) and evaluated health-seeking behavior.
Breathing new life into clinical testing and diagnostics: perspectives on volatile biomarkers from breath
In collaboration with Owlstone Medical, Functional Gut Diagnostics published a review on the use of breath testing for gut health, including a forward-looking outlook for developing the next generation of clinically relevant breath tests and how they may emerge into clinical practice.
Qualitative Validation of a Novel Virtual Reality (VR) Program For Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A VR1 Study
A team at Cedars-Sinai led by Dr. Brennan Spiegel published its first paper on the use of virtual reality (VR) for IBS patients. The “IBS/VR” program is a virtual clinic that “transports users into immersive VR worlds that teach patients about the brain-gut axis, cognitive behavioral therapy, and gut-directed meditation.” The study offers initial validation of the program through inductive analysis. Hear Dr. Spiegel speak about the new VR program in a Q&A video interview with Rome Foundation’s Dr. Douglas Drossman and Johannah Ruddy.
