Association Between Gastrointestinal Symptoms and Anxiety Levels in Patients with Functional Dyspepsia

Background Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a common gastrointestinal disorder characterized by chronic upper abdominal symptoms, such as epigastric pain, burning, postprandial fullness, or early satiation, in the absence of structural abnormalities, as defined by the Rome IV criteria. Anxiety, together with other psychological factors, is now understood to intensify symptoms while degrading the quality of life for patients with FD. Methods A cross-sectional correlational study involving 300 FD participants was performed in a gastroenterology outpatient clinic located in Islamabad. Participants were diagnosed with FD using the Rome IV criteria. The research collected data through self-report scales to assess gastrointestinal symptoms, anxiety levels, and quality of life. Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) measured anxiety symptoms while patients were evaluated for gastrointestinal symptoms through the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (GSRS) and Short Form Nepean Dyspepsia Index (SF-NDI). Statistical analyses included Pearson correlation, t-tests, one-way ANOVA, chi-square tests, and multiple regression. Results Out of the 300 participants, 153 were females (51%), 118 were males (39%), 29 did not disclose their gender (10%), and 111 were aged between 18 and 25 years (37%). A majority of self-administer drugs for FD, with 59% (n = 178) of the respondents and 56% (n = 167) having a diagnosed psychological condition. Pearson correlation analyses revealed that GSRS and SF-NDI correlation coefficient was significant and equal to 0.789 and the correlation coefficient of GSRS and GAD-7 was 0.703 the correlation coefficient of SF-NDI and GAD-7 scores was 0.631 and p-value was significant < 0.001 for all the coefficients while checking the association between gastrointestinal and dyspeptic symptoms and quality of life as well as anxiety. Moreover, participants who used medications had significantly higher perceived symptom severity and anxiety levels than participants who did not use medication (t = 7.47, p < 0.001) with a mean GSRS score of 41.8 (SD = 9.3, n = 177) and a mean GAD-7 score of 21.8 (SD = 3.8) for the medication users, and a mean GSRS score of 35.3 (SD = 16.4, n = 123) and a mean GAD-7 score of 16.9 (SD = 7). In a multiple regression model, both gastrointestinal symptoms with a coefficient of 0.543 (t = 3.218; p≤ 0.01) and dyspeptic symptoms with a coefficient of 0.203 (t = 1.695; p≤ 0.01) were correlated with anxiety, so it can be assumed that severity of the symptoms has an impact on psychological well-being. Conclusion Findings indicate a significant association between gastrointestinal symptoms and anxiety in FD patients, highlighting the need for integrated gastroenterological and psychological care. FD physicians should provide routine anxiety screenings as part of their patient management to enhance both treatment effects and patient life quality.