Abstract:

Background and Aims: The diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome is symptom-based and the use of colonoscopy for diagnosis is not clearly defined. The aim of this study was to compare the colonoscopic findings in patients with irritable bowel syndrome and a control group and to evaluate the diagnosis by colonoscopy in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. Materials and Methods: The study included 210 irritable bowel syndrome patients and 166 controls identified retrospectively from among 2485 patients who underwent colonoscopy in Celal Bayar University Faculty of Medicine, Gastroenterology Department, between 2006 and 2010. Results: Colonoscopy findings were normal in 65% in the irritable bowel syndrome group and in 74% in the control group. The frequency of polyps was found to be more common in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (17.1%) than in the control group (7.4%). Conclusions: Although the statistical probability of normal colonoscopic findings is greater than of pathologic findings in irritable bowel syndrome patients, we believe the requirement of performing a colonoscopy should be revised once again.

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