Disparities in Health Care Seeking and Physician Diagnosis of Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Results From a United States Survey

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Limited data exist on health care disparities among individuals with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in the United States (U.S.). This study explored sex, race, and ethnic differences in health care-seeking behavior and IBS diagnosis rates among U.S. adults. METHODS: Demographic and socioeconomic status, responses to the Rome IV IBS questionnaire plus IBS-related symptoms, health care-seeking behavior, and past health care provider (HCP)-based IBS diagnosis data were extracted from the 2020 U.S. National Gastrointestinal Survey II. Multivariable logistic regression was used to evaluate the association between sex, race, and ethnicity on health care-seeking behavior and receipt of an IBS diagnosis from an HCP. RESULTS: Among 88,607 survey respondents, 5414 (6.1%) met Rome IV IBS criteria and were included in this analysis. Most were female (n = 3427; 63.3%), White (n = 4305; 79.5%), and non-Hispanic (n = 4731; 87.4%). Health care-seeking behavior was reported by 3875 of these respondents (71.6%) and was higher in females (73.3% vs 68.7% male; P = .008). Of these, 1274 (32.9%) received an HCP-based IBS diagnosis, which was proportionally higher in female than in male (36.5% vs 26.2%; P < .001) and in White than in Black/African American (35.0% vs 24.6%; P = .002) respondents, respectively. Hispanic respondents had a numerically lower HCP-based IBS diagnosis rate than non-Hispanic respondents (25.6% vs 34.0%; P = .084). CONCLUSIONS: Among respondents meeting Rome IV IBS criteria, significant sex and racial disparities in health care-seeking behavior and HCP-based IBS diagnosis rates were observed. Further research is needed to understand the reasons underlying these disparities and implications on patient care and health outcomes.