The impact of disease activity on psychological symptoms and quality of life in patients with inflammatory bowel disease—results from the Stress, Anxiety and Depression with Disease Activity (SADD) Study

Summary Background Disease activity may be a risk factor for psychological illness in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Aim To correlate objective measures of disease activity with psychological symptoms. Methods Adult patients with IBD undergoing ileocolonoscopy were prospectively recruited. Demographic, psychological symptoms (depression, anxiety, stress), disease activity (symptoms, biomarkers, endoscopy), and quality of life (QoL) data were collected. One‐way ANOVA and multivariable analyses examined the associations between disease activity and symptoms of psychological illness, and identified other predictors of mental illness and reduced QoL. Results A total of 172 patients were included, 107 with Crohn’s disease (CD) and 65 with ulcerative colitis (UC). There was no significant association between objective disease activity (endoscopic scores, faecal calprotectin or C‐reactive protein) and depression, anxiety or stress scores (P > 0.05 for all comparisons). Gastrointestinal symptoms were significantly associated with symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress in patients with CD and UC (P