Bowel Urgency in Ulcerative Colitis Linked to Disease-Related Disability

TUESDAY, Aug. 25, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Bowel urgency is common in adults with ulcerative colitis (UC), especially among those without diarrhea or rectal bleeding, and is associated with disease-related disability, according to a study published recently in Gastro Hep Advances.

Chung Sang Tse, M.D., from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, and colleagues hypothesized that bowel urgency is associated with disease-related disability and influenced by psychosocial factors in a study involving 241 adults with UC. Baseline disease symptoms and psychosocial factors associated with disability were assessed using cross-sectional data from the Addressing Disability Effectively with Psychosocial Telemedicine trial.

Overall, 48 percent of patients had moderate-to-severe bowel urgency; among those without diarrhea or rectal bleeding, 75 percent experienced bowel urgency. The researchers found a strong correlation for bowel urgency with disability (ρ = 0.597), with negative illness perceptions, lower self-efficacy, and more health-related social needs mediating the association. Forty percent of the variance in disability was explained by gastrointestinal symptoms; psychosocial factors accounted for an additional 19 percent.

“Psychotherapists who treat patients with inflammatory bowel disease should be aware of the link between fecal urgency and inflammatory bowel disease-related disability, especially as fecal urgency may underlie or exacerbate social anxiety and behavioral avoidance,” the authors write.

Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical and nutritional industries.

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