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Abstract

Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGID) can benefit from various psychological interventions. The main objective here was to define the contribution of a new psychotherapeutic intervention, group counseling psychotherapy, for the management of FGID patients. Secondary aims included validation of new measures for gastrointestinal symptoms and quality of life in patients with FGID. Fifty patients seen in a tertiary care center were included in a program of 10 weekly sessions of 2 hr each. Gastrointestinal symptoms, quality of life, and psychological conditions were measured before and after treatment by quantitative indices and by qualitative self-analysis. Gastrointestinal index and quality-of-life index were significantly (P < 0.02) improved at the end of the psychotherapeutic intervention (from 77.5 +/- 4.0 to 63.2 +/- 4.3 and from 67.7 +/- 3.9 to 54.9 +/- 3.9, respectively). In a control group of patients observed for a comparable period of time while waiting for the psychotherapy program, gastrointestinal and quality of life indices remained unchanged. The severity of gastrointestinal symptoms and the quality of life deterioration were highly correlated factors (r = 0.8) at entry into the trial, and their improvement with psychotherapy was also correlated (r = 0.6; P < 0.001). Psychological abnormalities were frequent in these patients (anxiety in 31%, somatization in 29%, depression in 26% of the patients). However, no specific disorder could predict the results of the psychotherapeutic intervention. Over the long term (6-24 months after conclusion of treatment), gastrointestinal status, quality of life, and psychological condition were estimated as improved by 53%, 63%, and 67% of the patients, respectively. The gastrointestinal index and quality of life index we developed were validated to detect the disease and to follow its evolution in response to treatment. In conclusion, group counseling psychotherapy offered a significant contribution for the management, improving gastrointestinal symptoms and quality of life, of FGID patients. New measures for symptom severity and quality of life are available.

Health Care Use and Costs of Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults With Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders

“…30 A number of feasible and some costeffective primary care and transitional interventions have been identified to potentially reduce psychiatric readmission or improve quality of life and could be considered in the population. [31][32][33][34] Health care costs of children, adolescents, and young adults in Canada with SSRDs have not, to our knowledge, been previously reported. Our data suggest that per capita costs for these patients…”

“… 30 A number of feasible and some cost-effective primary care and transitional interventions have been identified to potentially reduce psychiatric readmission or improve quality of life and could be considered in the population. 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 …”

“…Early mental health consultation during inpatient hospitalization has been shown to reduce the length of hospital stay in children with comorbid mental health diagnoses, including those with SSRDs . A number of feasible and some cost-effective primary care and transitional interventions have been identified to potentially reduce psychiatric readmission or improve quality of life and could be considered in the population …”

Electrophysiological investigation of the contribution of attention to altered pain inhibition processes in patients with irritable bowel syndrome

“…All participants completed the following validated questionnaires before the experiment: the MOS 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey for psychological distress and physical health [ 29 ], the Pain Catastrophizing Scale [ 30 ], the Pain Vigilance and Awareness questionnaire [ 31 ], the Beck Depression Inventory-II [ 32 ], and the French version of the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory [ 33 ]. In addition, the St-Luc Gastrointestinal Index (GI) was used to assess severity of GI symptoms in patients with IBS [ 34 , 35 ].…”