The DOI matches its Crossref record; 23 of the 23 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Irritable bowel syndrome in general practice: prevalence, characteristics, and referral
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Little is known about the prevalence, symptoms, diagnosis, attitude, and referral to specialists of patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in general practice. This study aimed to determine these characteristics. METHODS: 3111 patients attending 36 general practitioners (GPs) at six varied locations in and near Bristol, UK, were screened to identify those with a gastrointestinal problem. These patients (n=255) and their doctors were given questionnaires. Six months later the case notes were examined to reach criteria based diagnoses of functional bowel disorders. RESULTS: Of 255 patients with a gastrointestinal complaint, 30% were judged to have IBS and 14% other functional disorders. Compared with 100 patients with an “organic” diagnoses, those with IBS were more often women and more often judged by their GP to be polysymptomatic and to have unexplained symptoms. The majority of patients with IBS (58%) were diagnosed as such by the GP; 22% had other functional diagnoses. Conversely, among 54 patients diagnosed as having IBS by the GPs, the criteria based diagnosis was indeed functional in 91%; only one patient had organic disease (proctitis). More patients with IBS than those with organic disease feared cancer. In most some fear remained after the visit to the doctor. On logistic regression analysis, predictors of referral to a specialist (29% referred) were denial of a role for stress, multiple tests, and frequent bowel movements. CONCLUSIONS: Half the patients with gut complaints seen by GPs have functional disorders. These are usually recognised, and few patients are referred. In IBS, cancer fears often remain, suggesting unconfident diagnosis or inadequate explanation.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“Nevertheless, lower gastrointestinal symptoms frequently prompt people to present to primary care, 81 accounting for approximately 1 in 12 of all consultations.82”
From British Society of Gastroenterology guidelines on the management of irritable bowel syndrome (2021) · cites this paper as [82]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“Most patients with IBS are diagnosed and managed by general practitioners in community settings and are never referred to secondary care, even if they have ongoing troublesome symptoms.82”
From British Society of Gastroenterology guidelines on the management of irritable bowel syndrome (2021) · cites this paper as [82]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
Functional bowel disorders and functional abdominal pain
Thompson, W. G., Longstreth, G. F., Drossman, D. A., Heaton, K. W., Irvine, E. J., & Müller-Lissner, S. A. (1999) · Gut · doi:10.1136/gut.45.2008.ii43 · Cited by 2,440
Self-citationTowards positive diagnosis of the irritable bowel.
Manning, A. P., Thompson, W., Heaton, K. W., & Morris, A. F. (1978) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.2.6138.653 · Cited by 1,404
Self-citationNon-colonic features of irritable bowel syndrome.
Whorwell, P. J., McCallum, M., Creed, F. H., & Roberts, C. T. (1986) · Gut · doi:10.1136/gut.27.1.37 · Cited by 473
A diagnostic score for the irritable bowel syndrome. Its value in the exclusion of organic disease.
Kruis, W., Thieme, C., Weinzierl, M., Schüßler, P., Holl, J., & Paulus, W. J. (1984) · PubMed · Cited by 318
A diagnostic score for the irritable bowel syndrome
Kruis, W., Thieme, C., Weinzierl, M., Schüßler, P., Holl, J., & Paulus, W. J. (1984) · Gastroenterology · doi:10.1016/0016-5085(84)90119-7 · Cited by 297
Impact of irritable bowel syndrome on quality of life
Whitehead, W. E., Burnett, C. K., Cook, E. W., & Taub, E. (1996) · Digestive Diseases and Sciences · doi:10.1007/bf02071408 · Cited by 290
Psychiatric Illness and The Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Young, S. J., Alpers, D., Norland, C. C., & Woodruff, R. A. (1976) · Gastroenterology · doi:10.1016/s0016-5085(76)80002-9 · Cited by 275
Psychological significance of the irritable colon syndrome
Hislop, I. G. (1971) · Gut · doi:10.1136/gut.12.6.452 · Cited by 246
Psychiatric illness and irritable bowel syndrome: a comparison with inflammatory bowel disease
Walker, E. A., Roy‐Byrne, P., Katon, W. J., Li, L., Amos, D., & Jiranek, G. (1990) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/ajp.147.12.1656 · Cited by 233
MORBIDITY statistics from general practice.
Logan, W. P. D. (1954) · PubMed · Cited by 214
Functional bowel disorders and functional abdominal pain
Thompson, W., Irvine, E., Drossman, D., et al. (2020) · Carolina Digital Repository (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) · doi:10.17615/x3mq-ct28 · Cited by 204
Self-citationOpening Pandora's box: the unpredictability of reassurance by a normal test result
McDonald, I. G., Daly, J., Jelinek, V. M., Panetta, F., & Gutman, J. M. (1996) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.313.7053.329 · Cited by 200
Irritable bowel syndrome and psychiatric illness
Walker, E. A., Roy‐Byrne, P., & Katon, W. J. (1990) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/ajp.147.5.565 · Cited by 164
Irritable bowel syndrome: the view from general practice
Thompson, G. W., Heaton, K. W., Smyth, T. G., & Smyth, C. (1997) · European Journal of Gastroenterology & Hepatology · doi:10.1097/00042737-199707000-00008 · Cited by 145
Self-citationReasons for consultation in irritable bowel syndrome: symptoms and patient characteristics.
Kettell, J., Jones, R. H., & LYDEARD, S. (1992) · Europe PMC (PubMed Central) · Cited by 109
Towards positive diagnosis of the irritable bowel
Manning, A. P., Thompson, W. G., & Heaton, K. W. (1978) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.2.6150.1496-c · Cited by 106
Self-citationA diagnostic score for the irritable bowel syndrome
Kruis, W., Thieme, C., Weinzierl, M., et al. (1984) · Gastroenterology · doi:10.5555/uri:pii:0016508584901197 · Cited by 89
van der Horst, H. E., van Dulmen, S., Schellevis, F., van Eijk, J. T. M., Fennis, J. F. M., & Bleijenberg, G. (1997) · Gut · doi:10.1136/gut.41.5.669 · Cited by 79
Crean, G. P., Holden, R. J., Knill-Jones, R. P., Beattie, A. D., James, W. B., Marjoribanks, F. M., & Spiegelhalter, D. J. (1994) · Gut · doi:10.1136/gut.35.2.191 · Cited by 76
Can panic disorder present as irritable bowel syndrome?
Lydiard, R. B., Mt, L., Ef, H., & Jc, B. (1986) · PubMed · Cited by 75
Partial hospitalization: an update
Parker, S., & Knoll, J. L. (1990) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/ajp.147.2.156 · Cited by 64
Welch, G. W., Hillman, L. C., & Pomare, E. W. (1985) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.291.6506.1382 · Cited by 61
Morbidity Statistics from General Practice
Alderson, M. (1988) · doi:10.1007/978-1-349-09068-6_8 · Cited by 56
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- Thompson, 1997, Gut complaints in general practice: implications for the currculum [abstract]., Gastroenterology, 112, A46
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Longstreth, G. F., Thompson, W. G., Chey, W. D., Houghton, L. A., Mearin, F., & Spiller, R. C. (2006) · Gastroenterology · doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2005.11.061 · Cited by 4,856
Self-citationO’Mahony, L., McCarthy, J., Kelly, P., Hurley, G., Luo, F., Chen, K., O’Sullivan, G. C., Kiely, B., Collins, J. K., Shanahan, F., et al. (2005) · Gastroenterology · doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2004.11.050 · Cited by 1,448
Rose, C., Parker, A., Jefferson, B., & Cartmell, E. (2015) · Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology · doi:10.1080/10643389.2014.1000761 · Cited by 1,301
“2% in an American population (Higgins and Johanson, 2004); however, it is commonly found at 6–12% in a general population (Heaton et al., 1992; Talley et al., 1993; Thompson et al., 2000).”
BackgroundInfluentialEnck, P., Aziz, Q., Barbara, G., Farmer, A. D., Fukudo, S., Mayer, E. A., Niesler, B., Quigley, E. M. M., Rajilić-Stojanović, M. D., Schemann, M., et al. (2016) · Nature Reviews Disease Primers · doi:10.1038/nrdp.2016.14 · Cited by 1,102
Guidelines on the irritable bowel syndrome: mechanisms and practical management
Spiller, R., Aziz, Q., Creed, F., Emmanuel, A., Houghton, L., Hungin, P., Jones, R., Kumar, D., Rubin, G., Trudgill, N., et al. (2007) · Gut · doi:10.1136/gut.2007.119446 · Cited by 818
Metadata
- Authors
- Thompson, W. G., Heaton, K. W., Smyth, G. T., & Smyth, C.
- Affiliations
- University of Ottawa (CA)
- Corresponding author
- Thompson, W G
- ORCID
- Thompson, W G
- Venue
- Gut
- Publisher
- BMJ
- Published
- 2000-01-01
- Volume
- 46
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 78-82
- ISSN
- 0017-5749 (ISSN-L)
- 1468-3288
- PMC
- PMC1727778
- OpenAlex
- W2137007351
- Cited by
- 477
- References
- 21
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 18 · 2017: 17 · 2016: 17 · 2015: 14 · 2014: 22 · 2013: 21 · 2012: 22
- FWCI
- 25.59
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Gut (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- HighWire Press Open Archive (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Gastroenterology › Gastrointestinal motility and disorders
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Psychosomatic Disorders and Their Treatments
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health › Infant Health and Development
- Keywords
- irritable bowel syndrome, functional bowel disorders, general practice, prevalence, specialist referral, fear of cancer, diagnostic criteria, proctitis
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Attitude to Health, Colonic Diseases, Functional, England, Family Practice, Female, Follow-Up Studies, Humans, Male, Mass Screening, Middle Aged, Neoplasms, Referral and Consultation, Cohort Studies, Prevalence
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
