Irritable bowel syndrome diagnosis

[...]there is also the confusing statement ‘There is no role for a faecal occult blood test to exclude gastrointestinal malignancy in patients with symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome’. A false-negative faecal occult blood result in symptomatic individuals may inappropriately reassure doctors not t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Australian prescriber 2019-06, Vol.42 (3), p.84-84
Main Author: Tyllis, Nick
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Blood tests
Celiac disease
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Irritable bowel syndrome
Letters to the Editor
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Description
Summary:[...]there is also the confusing statement ‘There is no role for a faecal occult blood test to exclude gastrointestinal malignancy in patients with symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome’. A false-negative faecal occult blood result in symptomatic individuals may inappropriately reassure doctors not to proceed with further investigations.2 It is true that there are many similarities in the symptoms of organic and functional gastrointestinal disorders. An appropriate history should include an assessment of risk factors for organic gastrointestinal conditions, including a family history of gastrointestinal malignancies, or coeliac disease.
ISSN:0312-8008
1839-3942
DOI:10.18773/austprescr.2019.027