Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients are not usually screened for depression and anxiety. Few studies have reported evidence on IBD and their association with depression and anxiety in individuals with a poor quality of life. Inflammatory bowel disease is seen to affect individuals at working age, compromising their normal life in several levels: physical, psychological, familial and social. This study was aimed at determining the prevalence of anxiety and depression in IBD patients attending a gastroenterology outpatient clinic. Scientific databases including PubMed and Google Scholar were used to search for studies using specific keywords including Inflammatory bowel disease, Crohns disease, Ulcerative colitis, Quality of life, Anxiety, Depression. We included 34 articles in the analysis. Among them, 22 studies published between the years 1986 to 2015 were selected and further analyzed. Studies (12/34) not meeting the selection criteria were excluded. The present study found that a significant proportion of IBD outpatients suffer from anxiety and/or depression. The prevalence of anxiety and/or depression justifies screening and referral for psychiatric treatment. The finding that severity of disease is associated with increased risk of depression and anxiety indicates strongly that subjects with active disease may benefit from intense psychiatric screening.
Key words: inflammatory bowel disease, Crohns disease, ulcerative colitis, quality of life, anxiety, depression
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