Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is the most common type of functional gastroenterological disorder, a group of disorders which also includes functional abdominal pain and functional dyspepsia. Because it is a functional disorder, the diagnosis of IBS relies primarily on its symptoms, as there are typically no identifiable organic causes and the symptoms are unrelated to bowel function. This chapter reviews the symptoms, physiology, and factors contributing to the etiology of IBS, and discusses important treatment components. It also presents a step-by-step protocol for the biofeedback portion of multimodality treatment for IBS.