Management of stress in inflammatory bowel disease: a therapeutic option?

Abstract

There is increasing evidence that psychological stress and associated mood disorders are linked with, and can adversely affect the course of, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Unfortunately, owing to methodological difficulties inherent in undertaking appropriately targeted and blinded trials, there are limited high-quality data regarding the effects on IBD of interventions aimed to ameliorate stress and mood disorders. Nevertheless, patients want psychological intervention as well as conventional medical strategies. Emerging trial evidence supports the suggestion that psychologically orientated therapy may ameliorate IBD-associated mood disorders, but there are no strong data as of yet to indicate that stress management has a beneficial effect on the activity or course of IBD. As yet, which, when and how interventions targeted at psychological stress and mood disturbances should be offered to individual patients with IBD is not clear.

Keywords::

• antidepressant
• cognitive–behavioral therapy
• Crohn’s disease
• education
• exercise
• hypnotherapy
• inflammatory bowel disease
• psychological stress
• psychotherapy
• ulcerative colitis

Financial & competing interests disclosure

Mahmood Wahed’s work was supported by Broad Medical Research Program. James Goodhand’s work received grant support from the National Association for Colitis and Crohn’s disease. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.