박선영1,신수진2

예수대학교 간호학과1, 순천향대학교 의과대학 간호학과2

Background Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is associated with various uncomfortable abdominal symptoms, including the combination of continuous diarrhea and constipation. Although not fatal, IBS causes serious inconveniences and deteriorates the quality of life. To prevent and control symptoms, it is critical to improve habits of daily life focusing on diet and reducing stress.
Methods Subjects included 1,456 female college students. ROME II was used to diagnose IBS and stress was measured using the Global Assessment of Recent Stress Scale Korean Version. A questionnaire put out by the Korean Dietetic Association (1991) was used to measure eating habits. The Irritable Bowel Syndrome Quality of Life (IBSQOL) was used to measure QOL related to IBS.
Results The prevalence of IBS in this study was 25.7%. More specifically, diarrhea-type occupied 32.3%, constipation-type 42.0%, and non-specific 25.7%. Compared to the normal group, the IBS group scored higher stress (t=5.645, p<.000) while there were no significant differences in eating habits between the two. The lowest score in the IBSQOL was in physical function, and the diarrhea-type ranked energy-related QOL the lowest.
Conclusions Based on this study, female students with IBS were highly perceptive to stress. Thus, appropriate health improvement programs are needed. Specifically, priority should be given to developing programs to improve physical function-related QOL.

Key words Irritable bowel syndrome, stress, quality of life