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Nature Reviews Gastroenterology and Hepatology 6, 148–149 (1 March 2009) | doi:10.1038/ncpgasthep1361

Behavioral therapy for IBS

Peter J Whorwell

IBS is a major drain on health-care resources, partly because the pharmacological management of this condition is currently unsatisfactory. Cognitive behavioral therapy, psychotherapy and hypnotherapy can help by providing a global therapeutic approach for IBS. This Viewpoint article discusses the available evidence for these behavioral therapies and highlights the benefits and the difficulties of using such approaches.