LIFE EVENTS STRESS IN FUNCTIONAL DYSPEPSIA - A CASE-CONTROL STUDY

Objective: To study the possible relationship between life-events stre ss and functional dyspepsia. Design: Prospective and case-control stud y. Exclusion of obvious organic disease for the dyspepsia. Methods: Li fe-events stress scale; derived from life-events scale by Tennant and Andrews. Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and abdominal sonography. Re sults: There were no significant differences between the patients and controls in relation to the number and categories of life events. Sign ificant differences, however, were noticed in relation to experiencing individual life events, but the interpretation of these differences i s not clear-cut, as they were present in both patients and controls. C onclusion: The question of the relationship between the stress and fun ctional dyspepsia remains unresolved and further quantitative studies are needed before reaching a final conclusion.