Key Points:
- Patients newly diagnosed with ulcerative colitis (UC) who experienced higher levels of psychological distress at disease onset were less likely to see improvements in gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea and abdominal pain over time.
- The study assessed 98 adult patients with new-onset UC over a period of 3 years. Biopsies, blood samples, and fecal samples were collected at diagnosis, and self-report questionnaires were used to assess symptom severity, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), anxiety, depression, and coping resources.
- Patients with higher psychological distress at baseline were more likely to experience increased severity of gastrointestinal symptoms and reduced mental HRQoL over time. Higher levels of gastrointestinal symptoms were associated with poorer physical HRQoL, while lower coping resources and higher levels of depression were linked to poorer mental HRQoL outcomes.
- Abdominal pain positively predicted changes in psychological distress over time, while diarrhea and abdominal pain negatively predicted changes in coping resources over time.
- Early assessment of psychological symptoms in UC patients may help identify those at risk for worse disease trajectories. Intervening in abdominal pain could potentially prevent or reduce future psychological distress.