SonarMD today presented new clinical findings describing the association between anxiety and increased risk for flares and higher disease severity in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), emphasizing the importance of integrating mental health support within VBC models for IBD management. This poster was shared at the Advances in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (AIBD) conference in Orlando, FL (Dec. 9-11, 2024).
The study analyzed data from patients enrolled in SonarMD’s care coordination platform, which integrates proactive patient engagement, disease activity monitoring, and risk stratification, acting as an extension of the gastroenterology practice. The results underscore the heightened burden of anxiety and its clinical implications.
Study Highlights:
- Prevalence of Anxiety Symptoms: Among 643 IBD patients, 11.8% screened positive for symptoms of anxiety (GAD-2 score ≥3).
- Comorbid Depression: Anxiety symptoms were associated with a fivefold increase in depressive symptoms, with 49% of symptomatically anxious patients also meeting criteria for depression (PHQ-2 score ≥3).
- Disease Severity: Patients with anxiety symptoms were significantly more likely to have high disease severity at baseline, with 42% categorized in the top quintile of disease risk compared to 15% of non-anxious symptom patients.
- Increased Risk of Flares: Over a six-month follow-up, patients with anxiety exhibited a nearly doubled flare rate (25%) compared to non-anxious counterparts (13%).
“These findings demonstrate that mental health factors like anxiety play a critical role in the clinical course of IBD,” said Beth Houck, CEO, SonarMD “By identifying and addressing psychological contributors, we can refine value-based care models to better support patients with chronic digestive diseases. Integrated care models that incorporate mental health screening and interventions should be considered a standard for high-quality IBD care.”
The data reinforces the importance of a multidisciplinary approach to IBD management within VBC frameworks, where mental health support complements physical health monitoring. SonarMD has a scalable VBC model in place that seamlessly incorporates mental health tools to support comprehensive patient care and improve patient outcomes.
SonarMD will present this data today, December 11th at the AIBD conference, held at the Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin Resort in Orlando, Florida.
