Overview

• The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology meta-analysis pooled 67 randomized controlled trials involving 7,441 participants.
• IBS-specific cognitive behavioural therapy and gut-directed hypnotherapy, delivered in person or via apps or the internet, eased symptoms more than routine care.
• The researchers urge offering behavioural therapies earlier in care pathways rather than only after diet changes or medications fall short.
• Methodological limitations, including unblinded designs and heterogeneous comparators, could inflate observed benefits and warrant caution.
• Experts call for larger, blinded head-to-head studies, including digital-versus-standard comparisons, and suggest guideline changes may take years.