Impact and Incidence of Food Allergy in Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Abstract Background Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a multifactorial gastrointestinal disorder affecting 5.2–22% of the population. It is not a single disease, but a name given to a group of gastrointestinal symptoms that commonly present together. Aim and Objectives The study aimed to evaluate the impact and the incidence of food allergy in patients with IBS. Subjects and Methods This was a prospective cohort study conducted at The Gastroenterology and Hepatology Clinic, or the inpatient Internal Medicine Department, at the Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University. Result the mean age was 34.8± 5.2, 30% were male while 70% were female. 38% were rural while 62% were urban. In Multivariate correlation regression, there were strong significant correlations between Food Allergy and age, sex, Family history, Smoking and IBS- D. Conclusion The observation that the administration of a monoclonal antibody against IgE resulted in almost complete resolution of this patient’s IBS symptoms suggests that this immunoglobulin plays a part in the pathogenesis of IBS, in at least a subset of patients. Consequently, in patients with atopy and IBS, targeting this abnormality might have therapeutic potential, particularly in those individuals not responding to conventional IBS therapies. There is some evidence that sodium cromoglycate has an effect in patients with atopic IBS, especially in those who have positive skin prick tests to food antigens.