Chronic constipation is still considered a functional or idiopathic disorder. However, in recent years there is evidence that its pathopysiological grounds may be actually due to a complex system of abnormalities of the enteric nervous system of these patients. In particular, as reported in this review, the enteric glial cells seem to be constantly involved in constipated patients, suggesting t...

Anismus, or constipation due to functional obstruction at the pelvic outlet by paradoxical contraction of the striated sphincter muscles during defaecation straining, is described in ten constipated patients and four patients with Parkinson's disease and constipation. The dysfunctional pattern of muscle recruitment resembled that characteristic of dystonia elsewhere in the body and was indistin...

Patients with severe idiopathic constipation are almost exclusively women of reproductive age. To investigate the possibility of a sex hormone abnormality in this condition, we have compared a range of sex hormones during the follicular and luteal phases of the menstrual cycle in 23 healthy women (mean age 33 years) with those in 26 patients with severe idiopathic constipation (mean age 32 year...

BACKGROUND In functional disorders it is unknown whether disturbed function is due to an intrinsic gut abnormality or altered extrinsic innervation. AIMS To study whether measurement of mucosal blood flow could be used as a quantitative direct measure of gut extrinsic nerve autonomic activity in patients with idiopathic constipation. METHODS Seventy two patients with idiopathic constipation...

Constipation is a frequent reason for consulting a pediatrician. As a symptom, constipation can be due to various etiologies in terms of frequency, nature and seriousness. Constipation may be of medical or surgical origin or idiopathic. Surgical etiologies are mainly represented by Hirschsprung’s disease. It is the main differential diagnosis even if it is 50 times less frequent than idiopathic...

BACKGROUND Prevalence studies estimate that chronic constipation affects 12%-19% of Americans. This prevalence rate exceeds that of many highly publicized chronic conditions, including diabetes and asthma. Identifying the etiology of each patient's constipation is essential for determining treatment and management plans. The etiology of chronic constipation falls into 2 broad categories: primar...