RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Irritable bowel syndrome and its treatment JF Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin JO Drug Ther Bull FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd SP 37 OP 39 DO 10.1136/dtb.21.10.37 VO 21 IS 10 YR 1983 UL http://dtb.bmj.com/content/21/10/37.abstract AB The irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a motility disorder of the gut. Some of its symptoms affect more than 10% of the normal adult population,1 but most people accept these symptoms as a minor nuisance. Only those with severe, persistent and recurrent symptoms, and those who worry about their symptoms, consult a doctor and become ‘patients’ with a ‘disease’. Patients with IBS, about 30% of whom are women under 40, are often seen in general practice and constitute up to half of the referrals to gastroenterological outpatients. Treatment has much to offer but is often unsatisfactory.