Differentiation Between Pediatric Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Inflammatory Bowel Disease Based on Fecal Scent: Proof of Principle Study

Background: The diagnostic work-up of pediatric irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and functional abdominal pain-not otherwise specified (FAP-NOS) commonly includes invasive tests for discrimination from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). As this carries a high burden on patients, an ongoing need exists for development of noninvasive diagnostic biomarkers for IBS and FAP-NOS. Several studies have shown microbiota alterations in IBS/FAP, which are considered to be reflected by fecal volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The object of the study was to evaluate whether pediatric IBS/FAP-NOS could be discriminated from IBD and healthy controls by fecal VOC analysis.