Differences in the Quality of Life of Patients Recently Diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) are chronic diseases, encompassing Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). An IBD diagnosis has an impact on the quality of life of patients; this impact can be different according to the type of disease. Objective: This study aimed to analyze the differences in the impact on quality of life in the early stages after diagnosis in patients with CD and UC. Patients and methods: This was an observational, multi-center, and cross-sectional study, with the participation of 156 patients recently diagnosed with IBD (<6 months) from 4 hospitals from the Health Council of the Valencian Community. The patients were assessed through the use of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (IBDQ-32), which measures the quality of life when living with IBD. Results: The sample was composed of 80 patients with CD (51.0%) and 76 patients with a UC diagnosis. The mean age was 42.3 ± 16.2. The CD patients were more affected (42.5%) in their general quality of life than the UC patients (17.1%) (p = 0.001). In the dimensions of the IBDQ-32, the patients with CD showed significant differences in the systemic, emotional, and social spheres. The bowel dimension scores were similar in both groups. Conclusions: The patients who were recently diagnosed with CD were more affected regarding their quality of life as compared to those who were diagnosed with UC. Psychological care must be considered to mitigate the impact of an IBD diagnosis.