Gut-Brain Strain: The Impact of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) on Depression and Prospective and Retrospective Memory Performance of Medical Stud

Shaden Almutairi; Rwan Alarfaj; Reema Alkhalifah; Yara Aleidi; Haifa Al Muhsin; Sajida Agha; Aamir Omair

doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

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Original Article
Online Published: 25 Dec 2025

IJMDC. 2025; 9(12): 3055-3063

doi: 10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students

Shaden Khalid Almutairi, Rwan Khaled Alarfaj, Reema Alkhalifah, Yara Suliman Aleidi, Haifa Al Muhsin, Sajida Agha, Aamir Omair.

Abstract
Background: Medical students, experiencing significant academic and psychological stress, exhibit heightened vulnerability to functional gastrointestinal disorders, particularly irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). However, research linking specific IBS symptoms (e.g., bloating, constipation, abdominal pain frequency) to cognitive deficits like memory impairment is limited, and studies often overlook specialized high-stress populations
such as medical students.
Subject and Method: This comparative cross-sectional study assessed depressive symptom severity and memory impairment in 377 undergraduate medical students in Saudi Arabia, comparing those with IBS (diagnosed via Rome IV criteria) to healthy controls. Participants were recruited via non-probability convenience sampling. Depression was measured using the beck depression inventory, and memory was evaluated using prospective and retrospective memory questionnaires.
Results: Among 375 valid responses, 35% met IBS criteria. A significant association was found between depression levels and IBS status (p < 0.001) and between depression levels and memory function (p < 0.001). However, no significant direct association existed between IBS diagnosis and memory function (p = 0.3). After adjusting for depression, age, and gender, IBS diagnosis remained non-significantly associated with memory impairment (Beta: -0.53; 95% CI: -1.2, 0.13; p > 0.05).
Conclusion: This study confirms associations between IBS and depression, and between depression and memory dysfunction in medical students, but finds no evidence of a direct IBS-memory link. Future research should involve larger, multi-institutional cohorts.

Key words: IBS, memory, depression, medical students.

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Pubmed Style

Almutairi SK, Alarfaj RK, Alkhalifah R, Aleidi YS, Muhsin HA, Agha S, Omair A. Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students. IJMDC. 2025; 9(12): 3055-3063. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

Web Style

Almutairi SK, Alarfaj RK, Alkhalifah R, Aleidi YS, Muhsin HA, Agha S, Omair A. Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students. https://www.ijmdc.com/?mno=287585 [Access: January 16, 2026]. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

AMA (American Medical Association) Style

Almutairi SK, Alarfaj RK, Alkhalifah R, Aleidi YS, Muhsin HA, Agha S, Omair A. Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students. IJMDC. 2025; 9(12): 3055-3063. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

Vancouver/ICMJE Style

Almutairi SK, Alarfaj RK, Alkhalifah R, Aleidi YS, Muhsin HA, Agha S, Omair A. Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students. IJMDC. (2025), [cited January 16, 2026]; 9(12): 3055-3063. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

Harvard Style

Almutairi, S. K., Alarfaj, . R. K., Alkhalifah, . R., Aleidi, . Y. S., Muhsin, . H. A., Agha, . S. & Omair, . A. (2025) Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students. IJMDC, 9 (12), 3055-3063. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

Turabian Style

Almutairi, Shaden Khalid, Rwan Khaled Alarfaj, Reema Alkhalifah, Yara Suliman Aleidi, Haifa Al Muhsin, Sajida Agha, and Aamir Omair. 2025. Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students. International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries, 9 (12), 3055-3063. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

Chicago Style

Almutairi, Shaden Khalid, Rwan Khaled Alarfaj, Reema Alkhalifah, Yara Suliman Aleidi, Haifa Al Muhsin, Sajida Agha, and Aamir Omair. "Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students." International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries 9 (2025), 3055-3063. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

MLA (The Modern Language Association) Style

Almutairi, Shaden Khalid, Rwan Khaled Alarfaj, Reema Alkhalifah, Yara Suliman Aleidi, Haifa Al Muhsin, Sajida Agha, and Aamir Omair. "Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students." International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries 9.12 (2025), 3055-3063. Print. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

Almutairi, S. K., Alarfaj, . R. K., Alkhalifah, . R., Aleidi, . Y. S., Muhsin, . H. A., Agha, . S. & Omair, . A. (2025) Gut-brain strain: the impact of irritable bowel syndrome on depression and prospective and retrospective memory performance of medical students. International Journal of Medicine in Developing Countries, 9 (12), 3055-3063. doi:10.24911/IJMDC.51-1759250427

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