title: Prevalence and factors associated with irritable bowel syndrome among medical students of Karachi, Pakistan: a cross-sectional study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and its association with stress, has not been studied among university students in Pakistan. We investigated the prevalence and the pattern of anxiety related IBS symptoms among medical students of Karachi.
  
  
  RESULTS
  An observational case-control study was carried out at three medical colleges of Karachi, Pakistan. Random sampling was done on 360 medical students. Data was collected using validated tools "Rome III Criteria" and "Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire". Participants with IBS were diagnosed on the criteria having experienced abdominal discomfort at least 2-3 days/month associated with high level of anxiety. The apparent prevalence of IBS was found to be 28.3%, with a predominance of 87 (85.29%) females (85.29%) over males (14.71%). The psychological symptoms of anxiety were encountered in 57 (55.8%) participants with IBS, among which males were 15.7% and females 84.2% respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Students who more frequently suffer with mental stress and anxiety are more associated with IBS.
authors.affiliation: Dow Medical College, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Syed Saad
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Naeem
authors.forename: Efaza Umar
authors.initials: EU
authors.lastname: Siddiqui
authors.forename: Abdul Nafey
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Kazi
authors.forename: Akhtar Amin
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Memon
authors.forename: Sumaiya Tauseeq
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.forename: Bilal
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ahmed
mesh_terms: D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000453:epidemiology; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D043183:Irritable Bowel Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D010154:Pakistan; D015995:Prevalence; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012577:Schools, Medical; D012737:Sex Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult