Chronic constipation, more needs to be done

Excerpt

In 2017, we published a paper surveying patients with various functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) presenting to secondary care gastrointestinal (GI) clinics across 11 Asian cities. We found that chronic constipation symptoms and defecation disorders received the highest dissatisfaction ratings. According to patients’ reported most bothersome symptom, straining at defecation topped the list at 61%, while according to Rome III criteria, defecation disorders (69%) and functional constipation (FC, 63.4%) had the highest dissatisfaction [1]. What might be the reasons for patient dissatisfaction? When we reviewed the treatments received by patients with FC, 53.4% and 24.8%, respectively had received laxatives and fiber supplements; 31% had received traditional medicine, while 49% prokinetics and 46% proton pump inhibitors (PPI). One possibility is that patients in Asia were reluctant to use laxatives. A multinational study of self-perceived constipation found that compared against people in Latin America, US, and Europe, self-management with laxatives was lowest in South Korea, with the majority favoring lifestyle changes [2]. …