Analysis: IBS Associated With 35% Higher Long-Term Risk of Psoriasis
Key Takeaways
- Baseline irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) was associated with a 35% higher adjusted risk of incident psoriasis over a median 14.4 years of follow-up in a large prospective cohort study published in the Journal of Global Health.
- Absolute psoriasis incidence remained low: 0.88% among participants with IBS versus 0.69% among those without IBS.
- The association persisted across multiple sensitivity analyses, although residual confounding, detection bias, lack of IBS subtype/severity data, and limited racial and ethnic diversity restrict causal interpretation.
A large prospective cohort study showed a link between irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and an elevated long-term risk of developing psoriasis compared to those without IBS.
Researchers publishing in the Journal of Global Health analyzed 437,170 UK Biobank participants without psoriasis at baseline, including 21,748 (5.0%) with IBS. Participants were followed for a median of 14.4 years, during which 4,325 incident psoriasis cases were identified.
IBS Linked to 35% Higher Adjusted Psoriasis Risk
Cumulative psoriasis incidence was 0.88% (95% CI, 0.73% to 1.02%) among participants with IBS compared with 0.69% (95% CI, 0.66% to 0.72%) among those without IBS. After adjustment for age, sex, ethnicity, education, socioeconomic deprivation, body mass index, alcohol use, smoking, physical activity, type 2 diabetes, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use, and C-reactive protein levels, IBS was associated with a 35% higher risk of incident psoriasis (HR, 1.35; 95% CI, 1.19 to 1.52; P < 0.001).
The association generally persisted across subgroup analyses and remained consistent in sensitivity analyses addressing early psoriasis diagnoses, competing risks, psychiatric comorbidities, psoriasis polygenic risk, dietary factors, self-reported cases, and missing data.
The investigators noted several limitations. Diagnoses relied on ICD-10 coding and self-report or linked health records, potentially missing milder disease. Greater health care utilization among patients with IBS could also increase psoriasis detection. IBS subtype and severity were unavailable, residual confounding could not be excluded, and the predominantly White UK Biobank population may limit generalizability.
“The IBS patients in our sample had an increased long-term risk of incident psoriasis,” the authors wrote. “This finding highlights the importance of monitoring psoriasis in IBS patients and suggests a potential shared pathophysiological mechanism between the two conditions which may inform future preventive and therapeutic strategies.”
Source
Qiu Y, et al. Journal of Global Health. 2026. Doi:10.7189/jogh.16.04140