Book Review
Copyright ©2008 The WJG Press and Baishideng. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Apr 7, 2008; 14(13): 2124-2125
Published online Apr 7, 2008. doi: 10.3748/wjg.14.2124
Rome III: The functional gastrointestinal disorders, third edition, 2006
Randa Mostafa
Randa Mostafa, Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Sharjah University, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
Author contributions: Randa Mostafa summarized the content of the 3rd edition of Rome III, assessed its quality and noted its contribution to the field; Randa Mostafa analyzed and compared Rome III with the previous edition of Rome II.
Correspondence to: Professor Randa Mostafa, Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Sharjah University, PO Box: 27272, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. mostafaranda@sharjah.ac.ae
Telephone: +971-6-5057204
Fax: +971-6-5585879
Received: November 16, 2007
Revised: December 14, 2007
Published online: April 7, 2008
Abstract

Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) represent a common and important class of disorders within gastroenterology. RomeI, the first edition was published in 1994, with symptom-based diagnostic criteria for FGIDs. These criteria began to change the diagnostic approach to FGIDs, and no longer considered “diagnoses of exclusion” but rather “diagnoses of inclusion”. Rome II, the second edition published in 2000, resulted from the continual process of analyzing new scientific and clinical evidence in the study of FGIDs. Rome II, diagnostic criteria for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), was extended with a focus on the frequency of symptoms occurring twelve weeks (not necessarily consecutive weeks) within twelve months. ROME III, the third edition, conservative one, was published in September 2006, with changes made only where there is good evidence to do so. Some of the differences between Rome II and Rome III criteria are highlighted in this issue.

Keywords: Rome III, Functional gastrointestinal disorders, Diagnosis, Classification