Medical Centric

Difference between IBS and IBD

Men's Health, Women's Health / By

IBS

  • Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the term for symptoms that happen when the contents of your large intestine move too quickly or too slowly.
  • People with IBS show no clinical signs of a disease and often have normal test results.

Symptoms

  • IBS is characterized by a combination of:
  • abdominal pain
  • cramps
  • constipation
  • diarrhea
  • urgent bowel movement

Causes

  • The cause of IBS is not known for certain, but the following conditions are thought to increase your risk:
  • bacterial infections in the intestines or colon
  • food intolerances and sensitivities
  • genetics, with a family history of IBS
  • mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety

Pain Location

  • Types and locations of IBS pain often include:
  • Upper abdomen
  • This pain may get worse after eating and is often accompanied by bloating.
  • Middle abdomen
  • This pain centers in the belly area and is often felt as cramping.
  • Lower abdomen
  • This pain usually decreases after a bowel movement.

People with IBS report different types of pain, including

  • cramping
  • sharp, or stabbing
  • aching
  • throbbing
  • Pain associated with IBS includes both visceral pains, meaning it originates in bodily organs, and functional pain, which does not have a known bodily source and is not accounted for by any test.
  • Because its symptoms involve functional pain, IBS is sometimes categorized as a centralized sensitivity syndrome (CSS).
  • These are groups of conditions that involve a heightened experience of pain, as in fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome.

Diagnosis

  • IBS is diagnosed largely by exclusion or ruling out other diseases and conditions.
  • Doctors do not order tests to diagnose IBS, although they may use test results to rule out other conditions.
  • Instead, an IBS diagnosis is usually made based on:
  • medical history
  • family history
  • physical exam
  • The Rome IV criteria form is the basis for diagnosing IBS.
  • These criteria say a diagnosis be made only after a person has had symptoms at least 1 day per week over the last 3 months and having symptoms that began at least 6 months ago.
  • Since IBS symptoms primarily involve your bowel movements, a diagnosis takes this into account as well.
  • The Rome IV criteria for an IBS diagnosis specify that two of the following conditions be met:
  • Your symptoms are related to defecation.
  • The frequency of your stool has changed.
  • The appearance of your stool has changed.
  • Often, an IBS diagnosis is made only after many other diseases and conditions are ruled out.
  • Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a group of conditions that cause swelling and irritation in your digestive tract, such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
  • The two most common conditions that are classified as IBD are:
  • Ulcerative colitis (UC)
  • Crohn’s disease (CD)

IBD

Symptoms

IBD can cause the same symptoms as IBS, as well as:

  • eye inflammation
  • extreme fatigue
  • intestinal scarring
  • joint pain
  • malnutrition
  • rectal bleeding
  • weight loss

Causes

  • The exact cause of IBD is not known.
  • It’s thought that the main trigger is an immune system that does not operate as it should.
  • ResearchersTrusted Source now think that IBD arises through a combination of:
  • genetics
  • environmental factors
  • the gut microbiota, or the microorganisms that live in the body

Pain Location

  • Abdominal pain is also a common symptom of IBD.
  • The Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation estimates that 50 to 70 percent of people with IBD report gastrointestinal (GI) pain when IBD first begins and, later, whenever the disease is active.
  • People also report pain associated with IBD in other parts of the body, such as:
  • painful joints
  • skin sensitivity
  • eye discomfort
  • oral sores
  • pain around the rectum

Diagnosis

  • Your doctor may also refer you for endoscopic evaluations such as an esophagogastroscopy and colonoscopy to evaluate the severity and extent of inflammation.
  • These involve inserting a small tube with a camera into either the esophagus or the rectum.
  • During these exams, your doctor will likely collect tissue to biopsy to help differentiate between different types of IBD.
  • Other tests may include:
  • biopsy
  • X-ray
  • MRI
  • CT Scan
  • barium contrast study
  • stool studies