Gelsectan® in the Treatment of Patients With Diarrhoea-predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is one of the major Disorders of Gut-Brain Interaction (DGBI) and the most frequent reasons for referral to both primary care providers and gastroenterologists.IBS is not a life-threatening disease, but imposes a significant burden on society, entailing a decrease in patients' Quality of Life (QoL), elevated rates of psychological comorbidities and loss of work productivity, which might be the greatest in subjects with IBS-D, for whom the fear of incontinence in a social situation can be especially debilitating. Moreover, IBS is associated with significant direct and indirect healthcare costs and has a considerable socioeconomic impact on society. Treatment strategy for IBS is usually based on predominant symptoms and their severity, and requires a strong patient-physician relationship, as well as both non-pharmacological and pharmacological approaches. Lifestyle interventions, such as dietary modifications, physical activity and lifestyle adjustments, and stress reduction/psychological therapy represent the most important initial non-pharmacological clinical approach for IBS patients, especially for those with mild disease. First-line pharmacological options for IBS-D include antidiarrheals, mainly loperamide, to control diarrhoea, as well as antispasmodic drugs to relieve IBS symptoms, in particular abdominal pain. Second-line therapies indicated for the treatment of global IBS-D symptoms include rifaximin, 5-Hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)3 receptor antagonists (alosetron, ondansetron and ramosetron) and eluxadoline. Other treatments recommended in patients with IBS-D consist of Tricyclic Anti-Depressants (TCAs) and bile acid sequestrants. Notably, management of patients with IBS is challenging since diagnosis and treatment could require several therapeutical strategies with often partial and unsatisfactory results. Indeed, most patients with IBS are dissatisfied with their current therapy and 34% report no symptom control, according to