Irritable Bowel Syndrome as a Stress Prediction Model in Mexican Dentistry Students

Abstract

The Irritable Bowel Syndrome is a functional gastrointestinal disorder associated with stress that may occur in the academic context, given that students are exposed to high demands during their education process which can lead to the development of diseases. The purpose of this study was to examine the correlation and predictive value between the Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) with stress in dentistry students at a public university in Mexico, taking into account the gender variable. The design is cross-sectional with 740 dental students. Nowack’s Stress Profile was used as well as the ROMA III criteria to identify IBS. Multiple lineal regression models were built, in which the dependent variable was IBS and the independent ones were the stress profile variables and group data. Such models were built independently for each sex and their results were compared. The IBS model in males was significant in the following variables: IBS = – 1.454 (problem concentration) + .315 (negative valuation) – .390 (social support network) + .513 (type A behavior) – .464 (rest/sleep), with a strength of R2 = .685; F = 75.72; p < .01 which explains 68% of the variance; and for females it was: ISB = – .041 (positive valuation) – .082 (eating habits/nutrition) with a strength of R2 = .643; F = 42.69; p < .01, which explains 64% of the variance. The comparative análisis determined that male dental students are at a greater risk of developing IBS due to stress. Therefore, programs aimed at a timely identification of the stress risk variables would be recommended to prevent consequences to the health, inadequate academic performance and wellbeing of dental students in Mexico.