Volume 26, Issue 129, November 2022

Knowledge, attitude and practice towards irritable bowel syndrome among young adults in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Lotfi Fahmi Issa^1,2, Yasseer Sonbul³, Saud Alzahrani⁴, Randa Bajunaid⁵, Omar Alqefari⁶, Yasser Alahmadi³, Khaled Alharbi³, Khames T Alzahrani⁷

¹Family & Community Medicine Department, College of Medicine, Taif University, Saudi Arabia
²Public Health and Community Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt
³Medical Student, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia ⁴Medical student, Taif University, Taif, Saudi Arabia
⁵Medical student, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for health sciences, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
⁶Internal medicine residents at Buridah Central Hospital, Qassim, Saudi Arabia
⁷BDS, PGD in Endo, Saudi Board of Endodontic SR, King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

ABSTRACT

Background: A non-organic gastrointestinal disorder called irritable-bowel-syndrome (IBS) is characterized by recurring stomach pain or discomfort and irregular stool habits. Many academics have taken an interest in it since it is a global issue that affects people's health and economies. This paper intends to identify knowledge, attitude and practice regarding irritable bowel syndrome among young adults in Jeddah city. Methodology: In Jeddah city, cross-sectional research was conducted. All individuals who volunteer to participate in this study filled a self-administered anonymous questionnaire in Arabic and in English. In the survey, demographic data was collected, and IBS knowledge, attitude and practice of participants were evaluated. Data was statistically analyzed using the (SPSS) program, version 25. Results: The study consisted of 542 participants 39.5% of them were males and 60.5% were females. 56.6% of participants aged between 20- 25 years old. 56.5% have heard of irritable bowel syndrome. Only 18.5% have been diagnosed with irritable-bowel-syndrome (IBS) by a doctor. 67.3% of participants think that IBS Reduces Quality of Life. Conclusion: This study shows that the general Saudi population knows insufficient about irritable bowel syndrome. Enhanced quality of life for IBS patients may encourage them to seek medical care as soon as possible, while also lowering anxiety and reducing the number of times they need to visit the hospital. These benefits could result from educating the general public about IBS to improve understanding and reduce misconceptions about the serious disease's development.

Keywords: Irritable Bowel Syndrome, IBS, General population, gastrointestinal

Medical Science, 2022, 26, ms461e2481

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.54905/disssi/v26i129/ms461e2481

Published: 11 November 2022