# Epidemiological study does not find link between IBS and abuse



## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Psychother Psychosom 2002 May-Jun;71(3):141-50 Childhood Abuse and Later Medical Disorders in Women. an epidemiological study.Romans S, Belaise C, Martin J, Morris E, Raffi A.Department of Psychological Medicine, Dunedin School of Medicine, Dunedin, New Zealand.Background: There have been many studies documenting adverse psychiatric consequences for people who have experienced childhood and adult sexual and physical abuse. These include posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, substance abuse, eating disorders and probably some personality disorders or trait abnormalities. Much less is known about the links between abuse and physical/psychosomatic conditions in adult life. Hints of causal links are evident in the literature discussing headache, lower back pain, pelvic pain and irritable bowel syndrome. These studies are not definitive as they use clinic-based samples. Methods: This study used interview data with a random community sample of New Zealand women, half of whom reported childhood sexual abuse and half who did not. Details about childhood physical abuse and adult abuse were also collected in a two-phase study. Results: Complex relationships were found, as abuses tended to co-occur. Seven of 18 potentially relevant medical conditions emerged as significantly increased in women with one or more types of abuse. These were chronic fatigue, bladder problems, headache including migraine, asthma, diabetes and heart problems. Several of these associations with abuse are previously unreported. Conclusions: In this random community sample, a number of chronic physical conditions were found more often in women who reported different types of sexual and physical abuse, both in childhood and in adult life. The causal relationships cannot be studied in a cross-sectional retrospective design, but immature coping strategies and increased rates of dissociation appeared important only in chronic fatigue and headache, suggesting that these are not part of the causal pathway between abuse experiences and the other later physical health problems. This finding and the low co-occurrence of the identified physical conditions suggest relative specificity rather than a general vulnerability to psychosomatic conditions in women who have suffered abuses. Each condition may require separate further study.K.


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## Rocki (Aug 27, 2001)

Interesting that this is an "interview" study. The studies that I'm referring to are those that are brain chemistry/annatomical changes linking the two. There are many who deny abuse of any kind and mainly that is semantical. I didn't mean for this to be a debate. There is lots of research in the clinical medical literature. Gayle


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

One of the problems with IBS and abuse is that most of the studies are NOT brain chemistry things like for psychological problems.Pretty much they find a bunch of really bad off IBSers (not a full cross-section, but an already small population of really badly off people) and then decide that pretty much ALL IBSers are depressed, or anxious, or sexually abused.Now I do believe that sexual abuse history may make dealing with IBS much more difficult, but I do disagree with some of the studies that seem to indicate that if an IBSer says they are not sexually abused, then they must be lying because ALL of them are. (and there are some studies that I read that REALLY try to make the point that the ONLY thing that causes IBS is sexual abuse)Part of the problem with IBS is that MOST people with IBS (historically, but I think this is getting better) NEVER talk to the doctor about it. So what you get walking into the clinic is generally not a representative sample, and then these results are used by some doctors to dismiss ALL IBS as just a mental problem.K.


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