Assessment of anorectal function in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) in remission frequently experience diarrhea, fecal incontinence and lower gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms. The absence of inflammation and the presence of symptoms resemble Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), which is characterized by abdominal pain/discomfort and changes in stool pattern and a disturbed brain-gut interaction such as anxiety and depression.

In this study we will measure anorectal function, rectal compliance and rectal visceral sensitivity in IBD patients in remission using both high-resolution anorectal manometry (HRAM) and with a barostat, as well GI- symptom severity scores and psychometric measures and to compare patients with healthy volunteers.