The following is a summary of “Poor Subjective Sleep Quality Predicts Symptoms in Irritable Bowel Syndrome Using the Experience Sampling Method,” published in the January 2024 issue of Gastroenterology by Topan, et al.

The impact of sleep quality on symptom manifestation in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) remains an area of interest. For a study, researchers sought to explore the relationship between sleep quality and gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, utilizing both actigraphy and the experience sampling method.

Patients with IBS were recruited from a Neurogastroenterology clinic and the community. Over seven consecutive days, participants recorded GI symptoms and mood using a smartphone app ten times daily. Subjective sleep quality for the previous night was reported each morning. Objective sleep quality was estimated through wrist-worn actigraphy. Cross-lagged structural equation models were employed to assess the temporal direction of sleep-symptom relationships.

Eighty IBS patients completed the study (mean age: 37 years, range 20–68; 89% female, 78% community). Notably, 66% exhibited clinically significant sleep disturbance (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score ≥ 8), and 82% (95% CI: 72–90) screened positive for a sleep disorder, predominantly insomnia. Cross-lagged analysis revealed that poor subjective sleep quality predicted increased next-day abdominal pain (0.036 < P < 0.040) and lower GI symptoms (0.030 < P < 0.032), with no reciprocal effect. Interestingly, no significant associations with GI symptoms were found for objective sleep measures obtained through actigraphy.

The study underscored the association between poor subjective sleep quality and elevated lower GI symptoms the following day, suggesting a unidirectional influence. Notably, objective sleep measures did not predict subsequent abdominal symptoms, highlighting the potential primacy of perceived sleep quality. The findings laid the groundwork for future investigations into the impact of sleep interventions on GI symptoms.

Source: journals.lww.com/ajg/fulltext/2024/01000/poor_subjective_sleep_quality_predicts_symptoms_in.23.aspx