Abuse in Women and Men with and without Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders

We aimed to investigate the history of abuse in childhood and adulthood and health-related quality of life (HRQL) in women and men with FGID in the general adult population. A cross-sectional study in a random population sample (n = 1,537, 20–87 years) living in Östhammar municipality, Sweden, in 1995 was performed. Persons with FGID (n = 141) and a group of abdominal symptom-free controls (SSF, n = 97) were selected by means of a validated questionnaire assessing gastrointestinal symptoms (the ASQ). Abuse, anxiety and depression (the HADS) and HRQL (the PGWB) were measured. Women with FGID had a higher risk of having a history of some kind of abuse, as compared with the SSF controls (45% vs.16%, OR = 2.0, 95% CI: 1.01–3.9; SSF = 1), in contrast to men (29% vs. 24% n.s.). Women with a history of abuse and FGID had reduced HRQL 91 (95% CI 85–97) as compared with women without abuse history 100 (95% CI 96–104, P = 0.01, “healthy” = 102–105 on PGWB). Childhood emotional abuse was a predictor for consulting with OR = 4.20 (95% CI: 1.12–15.7.7). Thus, previous abuse is common in women with FGID and must be considered by the physician for diagnosis and treatment of the disorder.