title: Irritable bowel syndrome: a population based study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The prevalence of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is relatively high, but up to now, no population based study in Iran has used the ROME III criteria. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of IBS by using the ROME III criteria in the adult population of Iran.
  
  
  METHODS
  A face to face survey was conducted in a large area of the Tehran province. IBS was diagnosed by using a validated questionnaire based on the ROME III criteria.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The study population comprised 18,180 participants, with a female to male ratio of 1. 15.3% of participants complained of gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, while the prevalence of IBS was estimated to be 1.1% (139 women, 59 men, p=0.000). IBS patients were more likely to be married, and older. The most common presenting symptoms of IBS were abdominal pain that was relieved by defecation (94%), change in fecal consistency (78%), and change in bowel frequency (70%). Constipation was predominant in 52% of IBS cases, diarrhea was predominant in 18%, and 8% experienced intermittent diarrhea and constipation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of IBS is relatively low in the Iranian adult population according to the ROME III criteria. The most probable reasons are the specificity of ROME III criteria and the characteristic low prevalence of GI symptoms in the study population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health System Research, Research Center for Gastroenterology and Liver Disease, Shahid Beheshti University (M.C), Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Babak
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Khoshkrood-Mansoori
authors.forename: Mohamad Amin
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Pourhoseingholi
authors.forename: Azadeh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Safaee
authors.forename: Bijan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Moghimi-Dehkordi
authors.forename: Babk
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sedigh-Tonekaboni
authors.forename: Asma
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pourhoseingholi
authors.forename: Manijeh
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Habibi
authors.forename: Mohamad Reza
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Zali
mesh_terms: D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D000328:Adult; D003248:Constipation / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D003466:Cultural Characteristics; D003672:Defecation; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D043183:Irritable Bowel Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015995:Prevalence; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires