irritable bowel syndrome ibs epidemiology forecast

Key Highlights

• Irritable bowel syndrome is a chronic functional bowel disease characterized by symptoms of abdominal pain and/or discomfort associated with altered bowel habits in the absence of a structural or organic cause.
• Based on bowel patterns at a particular point in time, the disorder may be categorized into four groups: constipation-predominant (IBS-C), diarrhea-predominant (IBS-D), mixed (IBS-M), and unspecified.
• Irritable bowel syndrome is generally diagnosed based on a complete medical history that includes a careful description of symptoms and a physical examination. There is no specific test for irritable bowel syndrome.
• In 2024, the total number of irritable bowel syndrome cases across the 7MM was estimated at approximately 32 million. Notably, the US alone accounted for nearly 46% of these cases, highlighting its significant share of the global irritable bowel syndrome burden.
• In the 7MM, IBS is notably more prevalent among individuals under the age of 35 compared to those aged 35 and older. Additionally, the condition is significantly more common in women than in men. In the US, individuals under 35 years of age account for approximately 50% of all IBS cases, while those aged 35–49 and =50 each represent about 25% of the total burden.
• In 2024, within the EU4 and the UK, diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) accounted for approximately 2.4 million diagnosed prevalent cases, making it the most common IBS subtype in the region. This trend underscores the clinical significance of IBS-D, which is often associated with more severe symptoms, greater impairment in quality of life.
• In conclusion, IBS remains a highly prevalent and heterogeneous condition with a notable burden across age groups, genders, and regions—particularly in younger individuals and women. There is a need for subtype-specific strategies in both research and clinical management to improve outcomes and reduce the overall impact of this challenging disorder.

DelveInsight’s “Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)– Epidemiology Forecast – 2034” report delivers an in-depth understanding of IBS historical and forecasted epidemiology in the United States, EU4 (Germany, France, Italy, and Spain) and the United Kingdom, and Japan.

The table given below further depicts the key segments provided in the report:

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS): Disease Understanding

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Overview, and Diagnosis

IBS is a chronic functional bowel disease characterized by symptoms of abdominal pain and/or discomfort associated with altered bowel habits in the absence of a structural or organic cause. Based on bowel patterns at a particular point in time, the disorder may be categorized into four groups:

• Constipation-predominant (IBS-C)
• Diarrhea-predominant (IBS-D)
• Mixed (IBS-M)
• Unsubtyped

The precise cause of IBS remains unknown. However, several factors have been implicated in the pathophysiology of IBS symptoms, including genetic disposition, diet, intestinal microbiota, and low-grade mucosal inflammation. No specific biomarker related to IBS has been found.

The common feature in all of the diagnostic criteria of IBS is abdominal pain and/or discomfort associated with abnormal bowel habits (diarrhea [loose and frequent stools], constipation [hard and infrequent stools], or alternating constipation and diarrhea). These criteria require a certain duration and frequency of the symptoms to fulfill the diagnostic criteria for irritable bowel syndrome.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome Epidemiology

The IBS epidemiology chapter in the report provides historical as well as forecasted epidemiology segmented by prevalent cases of IBS, diagnosed prevalent cases of IBS, gender-specific prevalent cases of IBS, age-specific prevalent cases of IBS, severity-specific diagnosed prevalent cases of IBS, subtype-specific diagnosed prevalent cases of IBS, treated cases of IBS in the 7MM covering the United States, EU4 countries (Germany, France, Italy, and Spain), United Kingdom, and Japan from 2020 to 2034.

• IBS is more significant in females than males. In the US, the total gender-specific prevalent cases of IBS were ~4.9 million and ~9.7 million in males and females, respectively, in 2024.
• In the US, the total severity-specific diagnosed prevalent cases of IBS were 800 thousand, 3 million, and 3.5 million in mild, moderate, and severe, respectively, in 2024. This implies that approximately ~48% of diagnosed prevalent cases of IBS belong to the severe category, whereas ~41% and ~11% of cases are moderate and mild, respectively.
• In 2024, within the EU4 and the United Kingdom, the severity-specific diagnosed prevalent cases of IBS were approximately 742,000 mild cases, 2.8 million moderate cases, and 3.2 million severe cases.
• In the US, among the subtypes of IBS, diarrhea-predominant (IBS-D) is the most prevalent (35.0%), followed by mixed stool pattern (IBS-M) (31.0%), constipation-predominant (IBS-C) (29%), and unspecified (IBS-U) (5%) in 2024.

KOL Views

To gaze into the epidemiology insights of the real world, we take KOLs and SMEs’ opinions working in the domain through primary research to fill the data gaps and validate our secondary research on disease prevalence.

DelveInsight’s analysts connected with 10+ KOLs to gather insights; however, interviews were conducted with 5+ KOLs in the 7MM. Centers such as the American Social Health Association, US; Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, US; Institute for Medical Virology, Germany; Centre Médicale de l'Institut Pasteur, France; University of Genova, Italy; University of Barcelona, Spain; Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan; and others were contacted. Their opinion helps understand and validate current disease prevalence, gender involved with the disease, diagnosis rate, and diagnostic criteria.

Scope of the Report

• The report covers a segment of an executive summary, and a descriptive overview of IBS explaining its causes, signs and symptoms, pathogenesis.
• Comprehensive insight into the epidemiology segments and forecasts, the future growth potential of diagnosis rate, and disease progression have been provided.
• A detailed review of current challenges in establishing diagnosis and diagnosis rate is provided.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome Report Insights

• Patient Population
• Country-wise Epidemiology Distribution

Irritable Bowel Syndrome Report Key Strengths

• Ten-year Forecast
• The 7MM Coverage
• IBS Epidemiology Segmentation

Irritable Bowel Syndrome Report Assessment

• Epidemiology Segmentation
• Current Diagnostic Practices

FAQs

Epidemiology Insights

• What are the disease risks, burdens, and unmet needs of IBS? What will be the growth opportunities across the 7MM with respect to the patient population pertaining to IBS?
• What is the historical and forecasted IBS patient pool in the United States, EU4 (Germany, France, Italy, Spain) and the United Kingdom, and Japan?
• What is the diagnostic pattern of IBS?
• Which clinical factors will affect IBS?
• Which factors will affect the increase in the diagnosis of IBS?

Reasons to buy

• Insights on disease burden, details regarding diagnosis, and factors contributing to the change in the epidemiology of the disease during the forecast years.
• To understand the change in IBS cases in varying geographies over the coming years.
• A detailed overview of Total Prevalent Cases of IBS, Total Diagnosed Prevalent Cases of IBS, Gender-specific Prevalent Cases of IBS, Age-specific Prevalent Cases of IBS, Severity-specific Diagnosed Prevalent Cases of IBS, and Subtype-specific Diagnosed Prevalent Cases of IBS is included.
• Detailed insights on various factors hampering disease diagnosis and other existing diagnostic challenges.