ArticleCureus2026
Bidirectional Associations Between Anxiety and Gastrointestinal Disorders: A Retrospective Cohort Study Using the TriNetX Database.
Article in Cureus, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionIrritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are common gastrointestinal (GI) disorders often linked with anxiety and depression. IBS is defined by recurrent abdominal pain and altered bowel habits without a detectable organic disease, whereas IBD involves chronic, relapsing intestinal inflammation. Bidirectional communication through the gut-brain axis, gut dysbiosis, neuroimmune interactions, and shared genetic susceptibility may underlie these associations. This study aims to quantify and compare the bidirectional associations between anxiety and IBS or IBD using a large, real-world multicenter dataset.
methodsA retrospective cohort study was conducted using TriNetX, a global network of de-identified electronic health records from over 100 healthcare organizations. Adults diagnosed with anxiety disorders, IBS, and IBD between January 1, 2021, and January 1, 2024, were identified along with matched controls. Patients with prior psychiatric disorders, GI conditions, recent GI infections, or relevant medication use were excluded. Propensity score matching balanced cohorts by age, sex, race, ethnicity, smoking status, and history of depression. Outcomes included incident IBS or IBD following anxiety and incident anxiety following IBS or IBD assessed over a follow-up period of five years post-index. Risk ratios, risk differences, and odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were calculated.
resultsAmong matched cohorts, 6,724 individuals (1.1%) with anxiety developed IBS compared with 2,457 (0.4%) in controls (RR 2.737, 95% CI 2.613-2.866; p < 0.001). For IBD, 1,412 patients (0.2%) with anxiety developed the condition versus 908 (0.2%) in controls (RR 1.555, 95% CI 1.431-1.690; p < 0.001). Reciprocally, 8,334 patients (6.6%) with IBS developed anxiety compared with 3,770 (3.0%) in controls (RR 2.211, 95% CI 2.129-2.295; p < 0.001). Among patients with IBD, 2,354 (2.6%) developed anxiety versus 2,383 (2.7%) in controls (RR 0.988, 95% CI 0.934-1.045; p = 0.669).
conclusionAnxiety and IBS exhibit strong bidirectional associations, whereas links between anxiety and IBD are weaker and inconsistent. These findings highlight the roles of the gut-brain axis and neuroimmune pathways in these conditions. Screening for psychiatric comorbidities and integrating GI and mental health care, including gut-brain-targeted interventions, may improve outcomes for patients suffering from these conditions.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.