Post-COVID-19 irritable bowel syndrome: an integrative review

Abstract

Introduction: the persistence of long-term symptoms of COVID-19 represents a new challenge for the medical-scientific community, it is the condition called long-term COVID-19. Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is one of the most common Disorders of the Gut-Brain Interaction and its post-infection development is already validated. According to the Rome IV criteria, it is characterized by the presence of recurrent abdominal pain, on average, at least 1 day a week in the last 3 months with onset of symptoms at least 6 months before diagnosis, associated with 2 or more factors: related to defecation and/or associated with change in stool frequency and/or associated with change in stool form. This study aimed to review data on post-COVID-19 IBS. Methods: this is an integrative review of studies published between January 1, 2020 and April 30, 2023, which presented data on IBS with previously diagnosed COVID-19 disease. The PubMed database was used, the descriptors were “Irritable bowel syndrome” AND “COVID-19”; the reference list of the articles was also retrieved. Results: eight studies were reviewed, it was observed that 0.6% to 11.6% of patients had IBS again after a minimum period of 6 months of infection. Risk factors were female gender, severity of COVID-19, presence of acute-phase gastrointestinal symptoms, and depression/anxiety. Conclusion: the results obtained suggest that COVID-19 may be associated with the emergence of de novo IBS. Further studies are needed to investigate its long-term effects and clinical spectra.

Exploring Biopsychosocial Health Outcomes in Endometriosis and Endometriosis with Co-occurring Irritable Bowel Syndrome – A Prospective Cohort Study

“…Furthermore, although we did not collect data on con rmed SARS-CoV-2 infections, emerging evidence suggests that exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus potentially causes long-term changes in gut-brain messaging that may lead to IBS or other disordered gut-brain interactions [90,103]. Studies have shown that individuals who have previously contracted the SARS-Cov-2 virus have reported increased rates of post-infection IBS and more severe gastrointestinal issues [104,105]. Moreover, exposure to the SARS-Cov-2 virus appears to worsen preexisting symptoms for individuals already living with IBS [106].…”