A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Initable bowel syndrome is a functional gastrointestinal Illness, defined by symptoms Irritable bowel syndrome has been described as a biopsychosocial condition, in which colonic dysfunction is affected by psychological and social factors As a result of this unusual constellation, irritable bowel syndrome may be subject to cultural variables that differ in different parts of the globe In this article, we describe some of the ways in which irritable bowel syndrome may be experienced differently, depending on local belief systems, psychological pressures, acceptance or resistance to a mind-body paradigm, and breakdown in support or relationship structure Examples are given in which irritable bowel syndrome investigators from countries around the world describe various aspects of the syndrome that may affect the illness experience of their patients We describe out own research studies that have demonstrated possible adveise effects on disease severity from relationship conflict, attribution of symptoms to physical lather than emotional cause, and the belief that irritable bowel syndrome is enduring and mysterious Also described is our finding that symptom patterns may differ significantly between different geographic locations Finally, we discuss the importance of cultural competence on the part of healthcare professionals in iegard to caring for patients of diverse cultural backgrounds Mt Sinai J Med 77 707-712, 2010 (C) 2010 Mount Sinai School of Medicine