| Hi Olivia,
You could have post-infectious IBS (PI-IBS) if your IBS symptoms started after a bout of food poisoning or a stomach bug (also known as gastroenteritis).
Gastroenteritis can increase your risk of developing IBS by more than four times!
After an infection, gut changes can alter the gut-brain axis, leading to IBS symptoms. These changes can include:
- Low-grade inflammation of the lining of the gut
- Increased size of mast cells
- Changes in immune cells of the lining of the gut and/or peripheral circulation. + More
Mixed symptoms are typical for this type of IBS - you may experience both constipation and diarrhoea if you have PI-IBS.
So, how is post-infectious IBS treated?
There is no widely accepted recommendation for treating PI-IBS.
However, this does not mean your symptoms cannot be alleviated.
Treatment would depend on the type of IBS symptoms you are experiencing and which type of IBS category you fall under. For example, if have symptoms that fall under the IBS-D category, the same strategies would be used to reduce your symptom severity.
We have written an in-depth post on managing post-infectious IBS, which you can read here.
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