About 10% of the world’s population suffers from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): a chronic condition in which patients suffer from abdominal pain and other complaints such as bloating, flatulence and diarrhea after eating certain foods. The available treatments are often disappointing and have little effect on the intensity of the pain, making the condition a major impact on quality of life.
That is why there is a great need for new medication that mainly has an analgesic effect on the intestines. Until recently, there had been few advances in this area, primarily because until a few years ago it was unclear exactly how abdominal complaints arise.
Allergy medicine better than placebo
The study was conducted in collaboration with seven other Belgian and Dutch hospitals. To this end, 203 patients with IBS were treated for twelve weeks with either a placebo or 20 mg ebastine, a medicine against hay fever. This showed that the allergy medicine is promising: some of the patients who received ebastine had noticeably fewer complaints after six to eight weeks. The studywhich ran until the end of 2022, offers new perspectives to improve the quality of life of a large group of patients.
Prof. dr. Guy Boeckxstaensgastroenterologist at UZ Leuven and lead researcher of the study: “For many patients, this is an important bright spot. Firstly, there is an explanation for their complaints, and secondly, there is now the prospect of new and more effective medication without serious side effects for their improve complaints.”
The study was conducted with the standard dose of ebastine, 20 mg. However, a 2023 pilot study with a higher dose of ebastine showed even better results. To further investigate this promising finding, the research team started a new study.
Mechanism behind irritable bowel syndrome
In 2021, Professor Boeckxstaens’ group discovered that IBS patients develop complaints due to a local immune reaction in the intestine against certain nutrients. The researchers showed that mast cells, a type of inflammatory cells, release histamine after ingesting certain nutrients. Histamine then stimulates pain fibers and ultimately gives rise to symptoms. This mechanism is similar to the disease mechanism that gives rise to hay fever.
Participate in the study
Anyone interested in participating in the follow-up study can contact koen.BELENS@kuleuven.be or register via the QR code below.
2024-02-09 07:09:50
#Allergy #medication #treatment #irritable #bowel #syndrome
