Hypnotherapy for irritable bowel syndrome in Saudi Arabian patients

This study investigated whether hypnotherapy provides a significant therapeutic effect in Saudi Arabian patients with irritable bowel syndrome. Patients (n = 26) were consecutively recruited at a psychiatry outpatient clinic after diagnosis by a gastroenterologist and a medical evaluation for irritable bowel syndrome. Each patient had 12 sessions of hypnotherapy over a period of 12 weeks (1 session per week). Patients completed a scale measuring symptom severity before and 3 months after the trial. Hypnotherapy significantly enhanced a feeling of better quality of life more in male than in female patients, and bowel habit dissatisfaction was reduced more in female than in male patients.