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Original Article
- The impact of inflammatory bowel disease on women’s health: a cross sectional study in India
- Arshia Bhardwaj, Arshdeep Singh, Riya Sharma, Gopal Bhardwaj, Liza Joshi, Ramit Mahajan, Dharmatma Singh, Pankaj Kumar, Marla C. Dubinsky, Shaji Sebastian, Vandana Midha, Ajit Sood
- Received May 26, 2025 Accepted August 12, 2025 Published online November 14, 2025
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.5217/ir.2025.00088 [Epub ahead of print]
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Abstract
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Supplementary Material
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ePub - Background/Aims
The gender-specific impact of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) on women in low- and middle-income countries remains underexplored. We aimed to assess the effects of IBD on different domains of women’s health.
Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted in women with IBD at a tertiary care center in North India. Women with IBD were interviewed using a structured questionnaire assessing menstrual, reproductive, sexual, mental, social, and financial health, and healthcare access.
Results
Two hundred and two women (median age, 41 years; ulcerative colitis [n = 155, 76.7%]) were enrolled. Anemia was present in 161 women (79.7%), with a median hemoglobin of 10.5 g/dL. Among menstruating women (n = 138), 69 (50%) had irregular cycles, and 39 (28.3%) experienced IBD exacerbations during menstruation. Sexual dysfunction was reported in 82.5% (n = 137/166). Pregnancy-related concerns were common (n= 120, 59.4%), mainly due to risk of heritability and safety of IBD medication. Ten women (4.9%) attributed pregnancy loss to disease activity. Cervical cancer screening (3.0%) and human papillomavirus vaccination (4.0%) rates were low. The median SICC-IBD (social impact of chronic conditions in IBD) score was 0.6. Forty-three women (21.3%) reported difficulties in finding a partner due to IBD. Limited access to IBD specialists (n = 150, 74.3%) and medications (n = 164, 81.2%) were reported in hometown. Fifty-five women (27.2%) relied on loans to manage treatment expenses.
Conclusions
IBD affects women across physical, reproductive, social, and financial domains. Culturally sensitive, multidisciplinary care models are essential to address these unmet needs. -
Citations
Citations to this article as recorded by
- Optimizing disease assessment and care pathways for pregnant women with inflammatory bowel disease
Arshdeep Singh, Harmeet Kaur, Arshia Bhardwaj, Vandana Midha, Ajit Sood
Indian Journal of Gastroenterology.2026; 45(3): 615. CrossRef
- Optimizing disease assessment and care pathways for pregnant women with inflammatory bowel disease
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- 150 Download
- 1 Web of Science
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