Psychological changes associated with self-regulatory treatments of irritable bowel syndrome

The psychological "side effects" of self-regulatory treatment (a combination of relaxation, thermal biofeedback, and cognitive therapy) for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) were compared among 20 "successfully" treated patients, 12 "unsuccessfully" treated patients, and 9 patients who merely monitored symptoms for 12 weeks. Pretreatment and posttreatment scores on the Beck Depression Inventory, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and Psychosomatic Symptom Checklist were examined. "Successfully" treated patients had significant (p less than .01) reductions on all measures and significantly greater reductions on depression and state anxiety than the symptom monitoring group. Interestingly, the failures also showed a significant (p = .027) reduction in trait anxiety and no significant increases on other measures.