Page 123 - EJMO-9-2

Eurasian Journal of
Medicine and Oncology Understanding ulcerative colitis

to specific diseases in UC patients experiencing distress. psychological factors, such as anxiety and depression, on
Their findings revealed a notable relationship between QOL in patients with UC, stressing the significance of
personality traits and specific quality-of-life dimensions in comprehensive approaches to patient care. These results
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UC patients. Notably, those with higher emotional function emphasize the complex characteristics of QOL in UC and
scores exhibited lower neuroticism levels, while those with highlight the importance of holistic treatments targeting
higher social function scores demonstrated lower levels of both physical and psychological aspects to enhance patient
social conformity. Similarly, Bahmani and Mujemnari well-being.
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revealed that children and adolescents with IBD (including This research offers important insights into how LOC,
UC) demonstrated a greater external LOC compared to EE, and QOL interact in cases of UC. It reveals their
their diabetic and healthy peers. This suggests a potential collective impact on UC diagnosis, with EE positively
link between external LOC, the severity of physical illness, related to UC likelihood and QOL negatively associated.
and the co-occurrence of psychiatric disorders among The nuanced trends observed in LOC groups suggest their
UC patients. These results highlight the importance of relevance in understanding UC risk. While the findings
considering personality traits and perceived control when support the significance of these psychosocial variables,
analyzing the psychosocial variables influencing coping they also offer novel insights into their combined effects on
mechanisms and QOL in UC patients. UC, emphasizing the need for holistic approaches in both
Findings from UC studies demonstrate that self- clinical practice and research.
conscious emotions, such as embarrassment and shame, The study’s cross-sectional design is a major
play a significant role in the psychosocial impact of the drawback, as it cannot establish a causal relationship
disease. These emotions may lead to delays in seeking help between psychological variables and UC, highlighting
and worsen health outcomes. Qualitative methodologies, the need for longitudinal studies. The sample size may
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such as semi-structured interviews, have unveiled certain not be sufficient to capture the full diversity of the UC
themes among UC patients – notably their lack of control population, thus compromising generalizability. Relying
and understanding. These findings underscore the on self-report measures introduces potential biases;
importance of addressing self-conscious emotions during future research could greatly benefit from incorporating
therapy and advocating for greater public awareness more objective assessments. In addition, self-report
on invisible disabilities, such as IBD. Furthermore, measures are susceptible to response style effects, such
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psychological and social factors influence pain perception as the respondent’s propensity to choose extreme value
in UC, with studies identifying the relationship between on a rating scale, which is a well-established limitation.
pain experience, QOL, psychological distress, coping Delving into additional psychosocial and biological factors
styles, and familial reactions to pain communications. In could further enhance the understanding of the etiology
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addition, individuals with UC exhibit changes in how they and prognosis of UC. While significant, these limitations
perceive physical sensations linked to emotions, showing point directly to specific areas for improvement, offering
variations in intensity during emotional events compared opportunities for better management and understanding
to healthy individuals. This suggests a modified emotional of UC in future research initiatives.
response linked to increased anxiety and depression levels
in UC patients, even when in remission. Studies on the 5. Conclusion
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QOL in UC have provided important insights into how This study contributes to the knowledge on UC by
the disease affects patients’ overall well-being. Systematic examining the collective impact of LOC, EE, and QOL
reviews and meta-analyses have consistently shown that on diagnosis. While previous studies have explored these
individuals with UC experienced a lower QOL than healthy factors individually, the findings underscore the need to
individuals, in both adults and children. 41-43 Moreover, consider their combined influence. Logistic regression
younger patients with IBD are much more likely to develop analysis has revealed that the relationships between
new mental health issues. Mental health remains one of the specific psychological factors and the likelihood of
most neglected aspects of managing IBD. 44
developing UC, implying their potential role to serve as
Moreover, among UC patients, QOL are typically predictive markers. However, some limitations exist, this
lower when the disease is active compared to periods of study is cross-sectional, has a small sample size, and based
remission. In spite of these challenges, promising evidence on self-reported data. Despite these constraints, the results
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indicates that QOL may improve over time, offering hope provide important insights on a novel perspective on
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to individuals dealing with this chronic condition. UC pathogenesis. Future studies should use longitudinal
In addition, research has highlighted the impact of approaches that integrate both psychological and biological

Volume 9 Issue 2 (2025) 115 doi: 10.36922/ejmo.8596