CHICAGO — A short, structured nurse-led educational intervention for patients with irritable bowel syndrome appeared to be as effective in reducing symptoms as a longer, multidisciplinary program, suggest findings from a small randomized trial.
The study evenly randomized 74 patients to six, 2-hour sessions led by a specialist nurse, gastroenterologist, dietician, physiotherapist, and a psychologist or to three, 2-hour sessions led by a specialist nurse using the same content as in the multidisciplinary education.
Knowledge of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) significantly improved in both groups as measured using a visual analog scale, with no between-group differences observed at 3 and 6 months follow-up, Gisela Ringström, R.N., Ph.D., and her colleagues reported in a poster at meeting on neurogastroenterology and motility.
The score on the IBS Severity Scoring System was reduced in a similar way in both groups, with 33% of the patients in the nurse-led group and 32% in the multidisciplinary group achieving a clinically significant improvement in symptoms, as demonstrated by a reduction of at least 50 points.
Significant improvements were also observed in GI-specific anxiety on the Visceral Sensitivity Index and in several of the nine dimensions on the IBS Quality of Life Questionnaire, according to the investigators from the gastroenterology and hepatology section of the Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Göteborg, Sweden.
The findings are clinically important because approximately 10%-20% of the population in western countries suffer from functional GI disorders, Dr. Ringström said in an interview.
In a separate study, led by Dr. Ringström, 80% of 86 IBS patients referred to a gastroenterologist from primary care had knowledge about IBS, but only 15% felt they had received enough information (Gastroenterol. Nurs. 2009;32:284-92).
In the current study, each patient stated an individual goal before they were included in the study, with 59% of patients in both groups reporting they had met their individual goal, Dr. Ringström and her colleagues reported at the meeting, which was hosted by the Functional Brain-Gut Research Group. Patient evaluation of the content and organization of the intervention on a 7-point scale did not differ between the two groups, reaching a median score of 6-7.
The mean age was 38 years in the nurse-led group and 36 years in the multidisciplinary group, with 92% and 81% female, respectively.
The study was supported by grants from the Swedish Medical Research Council and the Health and Medical Care Committee of the Region of Västra Götaland. The authors disclosed no conflicts of interest.