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Cognitive dysfunction in ulcerative colitis patients in remission and its comparison with patients with irritable bowel syndrome and healthy controls

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Abstract

Background

There is a paucity of research concerning cognitive impairments in Inflammatory bowel disease - ulcerative colitis (IBD-UC) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Studies on cognitive dysfunction in patients with IBD-UC have either been small or have shown conflicting results. This study is conducted to examine the evidence of cognitive dysfunction in IBD-UC patients in remission and compare the evident cognitive deficit with IBS patients and healthy controls.

Methods

This single-centre cross-sectional observational study enrolled a total of 90 participants, 29 in ulcerative colitis (UC) in remission group, 31 in IBS group and 30 in healthy control group. Assessment of cognition with the help of cognitive function tests mini-mental state examination (MMSE), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) test and p300 was performed in all participants.

Results

A statistically significant number of the participants in IBD-UC in remission group had MMSE and MoCA score below the lower limit of normal, in comparison to the healthy control and IBS groups. The mean peak latency of the p300 wave was statistically significantly increased in people in the IBD-UC group, in comparison to the healthy control and IBS groups.

Conclusion

Patients with IBD-UC in remission show impairments in cognitive functioning compared to the IBS and healthy control groups as assessed on cognitive function testing on MMSE, MoCA and mean peak latency of the p300 wave. This impairment in cognitive function is unlikely to be due to premorbid levels of intellectual functioning and is likely to have impact on health-related quality of life.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physiology, Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, 171 001, India

    Neetu Sharma

  2. Department of Physiology, Radhakrishnan Govt Medical College, Hamirpur, 171 001, India

    Sanjay Dhiman

  3. Department of Gastroenterology, Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, 177 001, India

    Vishal Bodh, Rajesh Sharma & Brij Sharma

  4. Government Medical College and Hospital, Chandigarh, 160 047, India

    Deepak Sharma

  5. Department of Neurology, Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, 177 001, India

    Sudhir Sharma

Authors
  1. Neetu Sharma
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  2. Sanjay Dhiman
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  3. Vishal Bodh
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  4. Deepak Sharma
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  5. Rajesh Sharma
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Contributions

Study concept and protocol design: Neetu Sharma, Sanjay Dhiman, Vishal Bodh, Deepak Sharma, Rajesh Sharma, Sudhir Sharma, Brij Sharma. Collecting data: Neetu Sharma, Sanjay Dhiman, Vishal Bodh, Rajesh Sharma. Analysis of data: Deepak Sharma. Preparing the initial draft of the manuscript: Neetu Sharma, Sanjay Dhiman, Vishal Bodh, Rajesh Sharma. Critical revision of the manuscript for intellectual content: Neetu Sharma, Vishal Bodh, Rajesh Sharma. Obtained funding: None. Administrative, technical or material support: Neetu Sharma, Sanjay Dhiman, Vishal Bodh, Rajesh Sharma, Sudhir Sharma, Brij Sharma. Study supervision: Brij Sharma, Vishal Bodh, Rajesh Sharma.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Neetu Sharma.

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Conflict of interest

NS, SD, VB, DS, RS, SS,and BS declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethics statement

The authors declare that the study was performed in a manner conforming to the Helsinki declaration of 1975 as revised in 2000 and 2008 concerning human and animal rights and the authors followed the policy concerning informed consent as shown on Springer.com.

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The authors are solely responsible for the data and the contents of the paper. In no way, the Honorary Editor-in-Chief, Editorial Board Members, the Indian Society of Gastroenterology or the printer/publishers are responsible for the results/findings and content of this article.

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Department of Physiology, Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla Himachal Pradesh

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Sharma, N., Dhiman, S., Bodh, V. et al. Cognitive dysfunction in ulcerative colitis patients in remission and its comparison with patients with irritable bowel syndrome and healthy controls. Indian J Gastroenterol 40, 169–175 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12664-020-01122-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12664-020-01122-y

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