OBJECTIVES: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a relapsing, chronic functional gastrointestinal disorder with continuous nuisance bowel symptoms leading to long-term disturbances on quality of life (QoL). Various conventional and innovative gastrointestinal drugs are available for the symptomatic control of IBS. However, it is uneasy to justify cost-effectiveness of IBS treatments due to the unspecific symptoms, a disparity of QoL measurements and a lack of clear association between functioning and QoL. This preliminary used a qualitative approach to explore the impacts of IBS on patients and explore underlying attributes to QoL. METHODS: Semi-structure interviews were conducted at a medical center in southern Taiwan from July 2010 to December 2010. Outpatients with defined diagnosis of IBS and receiving medical treatment were invited to participate, and a topic guide was used to ensure systematic coverage of attributes related to QoL. The interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim for framework analysis. RESULTS: The most disturbing symptoms for 29 participants were recurrent abdominal pain or discomfort, which affect the efficiency of work or study. In addition, the frequent bowel movements reduce patient’s willingness to participate in social activities and jeopardize their interpersonal relationship. Moreover, repeated inspections and medical visits during follow-ups also raise patients’ further concerns and worries on health. Unsatisfied symptoms control was commonly stated by participants and alternative managements such as homeopathic remedies, traditional Chinese medicines, sports, and diet modifications were tried and considered being ineffective. Some participants with uncontrolled symptoms acknowledged their failure in adhering to medical treatment due to the concerns of adverse drug reactions. CONCLUSIONS: For patients with potentially moderate to severe IBS and consistent medical treatments, the functional impairment was still tolerable yet intangible (anxiety, worries) and social stress may have greater impacts on QoL. Therefore, a capability approach may work better than the utility and functioning QoL measure.