Psychological characteristics of patients with the irritable bowel syndrome.

The Eysenck Personality Inventory, the Middlesex Hospital questionnaire, and forearm blood-flow were used to measure aspects of psychological status in forty-one patients with the irritable bowel syndrome, who were compared in this respect with twenty-five matched psychoneurotic subjects and with a general population. The results show a positive association between psychoneurotic disorder and the irritable bowel syndrome.