Gender-dependent preferences of medical professionals in treatment choices for irritable bowel syndrome: results from an exploratory study

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a highly prevalent, chronic disorder of the Gut-brain interaction associated with a high healthcare utilization burden. The treatment of IBS remains challenging due to numerous treatment options and heterogeneity in IBS symptoms. Therefore, for effective decision-making, insight into management strategies and treatment preferences of both patients and physicians is important. In our previous study, the most-preferred treatment among IBS patients was dietary intervention, subsequently pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy. However, the preferences of physicians remain unclear. The aim of this study was to explore treatment preferences for IBS among physicians and explore gender differences. A labeled discrete choice experiment (DCE) survey was filled in, containing twelve scenarios with each three alternatives (medication, diet, psychotherapy). Five attributes were included in the treatment scenario: effectiveness, time until response, time until recurrence, side effects and treatment burden. The preference weights were analyzed using a mixed logit model. In total, 52 physicians completed the DCE survey (58% female). The majority of these respondents were gastroenterologists (51.9%), followed by gastroenterology trainees (34.7%). The most-preferred treatment was pharmacotherapy, subsequently dietary intervention and psychotherapy. Effectiveness, treatment burden and mild side effects were reported to be important treatment characteristics. Female physicians chose dietary interventions and psychotherapy more often than male physicians. Pharmacotherapy was the most-preferred IBS therapy among physicians. Female physicians may be more inclined to choose non-pharmacological interventions compared to males. However, future studies should further investigate gender differences and their impact on management strategies for IBS.