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Relationship between anxiety and gastric sensorimotor function in functional dyspepsia.
Lukas Van Oudenhove1, Joris Vandenberghe, Brecht Geeraerts
1Department of Pathophysiology, Gastroenterology Section, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Leuven, Belgium. Lukas.VanOudenhove@med.kuleuven.be
Psychosomatic Medicine
|June 9, 2007
Summary
Anxiety significantly impacts gastric function in hypersensitive functional dyspepsia (FD) patients. Higher state anxiety correlates with lower pain thresholds and reduced gastric compliance, highlighting anxiety
Area of Science:
- Gastroenterology
- Psychiatry
- Clinical Medicine
Background:
- Functional dyspepsia (FD) frequently co-occurs with anxiety disorders.
- Epigastric pain in FD is linked to gastric hypersensitivity and neuroticism.
- Anxiety experimentally induced in healthy individuals affects proximal stomach sensorimotor function.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between anxiety and gastric sensorimotor function in patients with functional dyspepsia (FD).
- To explore anxiety's role, particularly in hypersensitive FD patients.
Main Methods:
- 139 FD patients (102 women) underwent barostat investigations.
- Gastric compliance, meal accommodation, and sensory thresholds were measured.
- Anxiety assessed using State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-A).
Main Results:
- Hypersensitive FD patients exhibited significantly lower gastric compliance compared to normosensitive patients.
- No significant correlation found between STAI scores and gastric sensorimotor function in the overall FD group.
- In hypersensitive FD patients, state anxiety negatively correlated with discomfort threshold, pain threshold, and gastric compliance.
Conclusions:
- State anxiety is significantly and negatively associated with sensory thresholds and gastric compliance in hypersensitive FD.
- These findings support the hypothesis that anxiety plays a crucial role in functional dyspepsia, especially in hypersensitive individuals.
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