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The effect of melatonin on irritable bowel syndrome patients with and without sleep disorders: a randomized double-blinded placebo-controlled trial study.

BMC gastroenterology
January 1, 1970
Masood Faghih Dinevari et al. (6 authors)
Randomized Controlled TrialJournal ArticleHuman StudyClinical
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to investigate melatonin's therapeutic effects on IBS symptoms, quality of life, and sleep parameters in IBS patients with and without sleep disorders.

Results Summary

Melatonin significantly improved IBS scores, GI symptoms, and quality of life in both groups, and improved sleep parameters in patients with sleep disorders, but not in those without. No significant improvement was observed in defecation frequency.

Population

136 IBS patients diagnosed via ROME IV criteria, divided into those with and without sleep disorders.

Effective Dosage

6 mg daily (3 mg fasting and 3 mg at bedtime).

Duration

8 weeks.

Interactions

None mentioned.

Extracted Claims (15)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
melatonin 6 mg daily
decrease
IBS score
IBS patients with and without sleep disorders
-
a significant improvement was observed
#1
melatonin 6 mg daily
decrease
severity of abdominal pain
IBS patients with and without sleep disorders
-
a significant improvement was observed
#2
melatonin 6 mg daily
decrease
frequency of abdominal pain
IBS patients with and without sleep disorders
-
a significant improvement was observed
#3
melatonin 6 mg daily
decrease
severity of abdominal bloating
IBS patients with and without sleep disorders
-
a significant improvement was observed
#4
melatonin 6 mg daily
increase
satisfaction with bowel habits
IBS patients with and without sleep disorders
-
a significant improvement was observed
#5
melatonin 6 mg daily
decrease
disease's impact on patient's life
IBS patients with and without sleep disorders
-
a significant improvement was observed
#6
melatonin 6 mg daily
improve
stool consistency
IBS patients with and without sleep disorders
-
a significant improvement was observed
#7
melatonin 6 mg daily
no change
frequency of defecations per week
IBS patients with and without sleep disorders
-
there was no significant improvement
#8
melatonin 6 mg daily
increase
subjective sleep quality
IBS patients with sleep disorders
-
significant improvement was observed
#9
melatonin 6 mg daily
decrease
sleep latency
IBS patients with sleep disorders
-
significant improvement was observed
#10
melatonin 6 mg daily
increase
sleep duration
IBS patients with sleep disorders
-
significant improvement was observed
#11
melatonin 6 mg daily
increase
sleep efficiency
IBS patients with sleep disorders
-
significant improvement was observed
#12
melatonin 6 mg daily
decrease
daytime dysfunction
IBS patients with sleep disorders
-
significant improvement was observed
#13
melatonin 6 mg daily
no change
sleep parameters
IBS patients without sleep disorders
-
there was no significant improvement
#14
melatonin 6 mg daily
increase
quality of life
IBS patients with and without sleep disorders
-
improvement was observed in a significant number of melatonin recipients compared to placebo
#15
Abstract

BACKGROUND: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of the world's most common gastrointestinal (GI) disorders, and current treatments do not meet patients' demands. This study aimed to investigate melatonin's therapeutic effects on IBS score, GI symptoms, quality of life, and sleep parameters in both groups of IBS patients with and without sleep disorders. METHODS: In this randomized double-blinded placebo-controlled trial study, 136 patients with a diagnosis of IBS based on ROME IV criteria were enrolled and then divided into two groups respecting having sleep disorders or not. Patients of each group were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive melatonin 6 mg daily (3 mg fasting and 3 mg at bedtime) for 2 months (8 weeks). Blocked randomization was used in this process. All patients were evaluated both at the beginning and the end of the trial regarding IBS score, GI symptoms, quality of life, and sleep parameters through valid questionnaires. RESULTS: In both groups of patients with and without sleep disorders, a significant improvement was observed in IBS score and GI symptoms, including the severity and the frequency of abdominal pain, the severity of abdominal bloating, satisfaction with bowel habits, disease's impact on patient's life, and stool consistency; however, there was no significant improvement in the frequency of defecations per week. In patients with sleep disorders, significant improvement in sleep parameters, including subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, sleep duration, sleep efficiency, and daytime dysfunction, was observed, while in patients without sleep disorders, there was no significant improvement in sleep parameters. In addition, quality-of-life improvement was observed in a significant number of melatonin recipients compared to placebo in both groups of patients. CONCLUSION: Melatonin can be considered an effective treatment for improving IBS score, GI symptoms, and quality of life in IBS patients with and without sleep disorders. It is also effective to improve sleep parameters in IBS patients with sleep disorders. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study has been registered to the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (IRCT) with the approval number IRCT20220104053626N2 on the date of 13/02/2022.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
HumansIrritable Bowel SyndromeMelatoninQuality of LifeIranTreatment OutcomeAbdominal PainDouble-Blind MethodSleep Wake Disorders
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy85/10
Quality90/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations5
Citations/Year2.5
Relative Citation Ratio1.75
NIH Percentile70.3%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.50
Weight Score1.70
Normalized Score0.72
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