Review: behavioural interventions plus laxatives are effective for defecation disorders in children, but biofeedback does not add benefit.

Review: behavioral interventions plus laxatives are effective for defecation disorders, but biofeedback does not add benefit.

Constipation in children.

INTRODUCTION Prevalence of chronic constipation has been estimated at 1-5% of children in the UK and USA, most of whom have no obvious aetiological factors. A third of children with chronic constipation continue to have problems beyond puberty. Half of children with chronic faecal impaction and soiling have experienced an episode of painful defecation, and many children with chronic constipatio...

Empirically supported treatments in pediatric psychology: constipation and encopresis.

OBJECTIVE To review the empirical research examining behavioral and medical treatments for constipation and fecal incontinence. METHOD Sixty-five articles investigating intervention efficacy were identified and reviewed. Twenty-three of the studies were excluded because they were case studies or were less well-controlled single-case designs. The intervention protocol for each study was identi...

Diagnosis and Treatment of Dyssynergic Defecation

Dyssynergic defecation is common and affects up to one half of patients with chronic constipation. This acquired behavioral problem is due to the inability to coordinate the abdominal and pelvic floor muscles to evacuate stools. A detailed history, prospective stool diaries, and a careful digital rectal examination will not only identify the nature of bowel dysfunction, but also raise the index...

Additive benefits of laxative, toilet training, and biofeedback therapies in the treatment of pediatric encopresis.

Compared the additive benefits of laxative, behavior, and biofeedback treatments for encopresis, while attempting to identify treatment mechanisms and predictors of treatment outcome. 44 encopretic children, ages 6-15 years, were randomly assigned to either laxative therapy (LAX), LAX plus enhanced toilet training (ETT), or LAX + ETT + anal sphincter biofeedback (BF). Daily symptom diaries were...