Self-Perceived Stress Is Associated with Chest Pain and Personality in Patients with Refractory Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders

Abstract

Stressful events are frequently associated with functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGID). This study aims to determine if the severity of self-perceived stress is associated with specific FGID and personality characteristics in 822 patients with FGID who have filled a Rome III questionnaire, Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory 2 (MMPI-2), and a 10-point Likert scale for self-perceived stress. According to stress severity, the patients were divided into three groups: low (<4; n = 183), moderate (4–6; n = 283), and severe stress (>6; n = 356). Female sex was more frequent in the severe stress group than in the low stress group (p = 0.001). Stress severity was strongly correlated with the two MMPI-2 posttraumatic stress scales. Clinically, chest pain was more frequently reported by severe stress patients than moderate stress patients. MMPI-2 clinical scales vary significantly according to the severity of stress, and “mild stress” patients have increased hysteria and depression scales and showed a higher frequency of irritable bowel syndrome–diarrhea. This study shows that severe stress severity is associated with a higher frequency of noncardiac chest pain and correlated with most personality items.