Antidepressants in irritable bowel: A randomised controlled trial

Funded Activity Summary

Irritable bowel syndrome is a common costly disorder in Australia; one in six Australians suffer with the condition. IBS can cause very substantial disability; some become housebound because of the need to have toilet facilities nearby. The currently available treatments for irritable bowel syndrome only provide at best partial relief or are completely ineffective. The literature suggests that individuals who suffer from an irritable bowel may benefit from the use of an antidepressant medication. Antidepressant medications have been shown to affect the function of the gastrointestinal system, in addition to relieving some of the psychological symptoms, such as depression and anxiety that are common in individuals with irritable bowel syndrome. To date, there have been no proper controlled trials of antidepressant medications in IBS, and there have been no studies at all into the new class of antidepressant medications, the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, in treating IBS. In this study we aim to investigate whether antidepressant medications are effective in treating irritable bowel syndrome by directly comparing a tricyclic (older class of antidepressant) with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (new class of antidepressant) and with a placebo. All study participants will be closely monitored during the study. Patients will have their gastrointestinal symptoms, psychological symptoms, disability, quality of life and tolerance to the medication assessed. This will be the first comprehensive study of antidepressant medications assessed and the irritable bowel syndrome to be undertaken. The study will be conducted at the Nepean Hospital and the Royal North Shore Hospital; both of these centres have a well established treatment and research programs into the irritable bowel syndrome.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-01-2001

End Date: 01-01-2004

Funding Scheme: NHMRC Project Grants

Funding Amount: $227,546.00

Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Sport and exercise nutrition

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

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Other Keywords

antidepressant therapy | constipation | diarrhoea | irritable bowel syndrome | randomised controlled trial | selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor | tricyclic antidepressant

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