BACKGROUND
Irritable bowel syndrome is a common functional gastrointestinal disorder that negatively affects all aspects of life. With the widespread use of the Internet, internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy has been developed and applied to control symptoms and improve the quality of life of those with irritable bowel syndrome.
OBJECTIVE
This study aimed to systematically review studies that examined the use of internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy in patients with irritable bowel syndrome and to evaluate the effects of internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy on the improvement of symptom severity, quality of life, and psychological status, and on cost-effectiveness.
METHODS
This meta-analysis involved the search of six databases for relevant publications. Nine randomized controlled trials were finally included in the analysis.
RESULTS
Internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy had medium to large effects (standardized mean difference, 95% confidence interval) on symptom severity (-0.633; -0.861 to -0.4304), quality of life (0.582; 0.396 to 0.769), and cost-effectiveness (-0.372; -0.704 to -0.039) at post-intervention, and the effects on symptom severity remained over time even after the intervention. There was no significant difference in psychological status, including anxiety and depression, in those with irritable bowel syndrome compared to the controls during the post-intervention period.
CONCLUSIONS
This review demonstrated that internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy could be a cost-effective intervention for improving symptoms and the quality of life in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. However, studies are still insufficient regarding the use of internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy in these patients; therefore, more high-quality studies are required in future.