BACKGROUND The aim of the LIFELAX randomised controlled trial (diet and lifestyle vs. laxatives in the management of chronic constipation) is to develop and evaluate a cost effective intervention to promote diet and lifestyle in the treatment and management of chronic constipation for older people in Primary Care. Constipation affects the quality of life in around 20% of older people in the com...

INTRODUCTION Constipation is a common complaint in children and early intervention with oral laxatives may improve complete resolution of functional constipation. However, most treatment guidelines are based on reviews of the literature that do not incorporate a quality assessment of the studies. OBJECTIVE To investigate and summarise the quantity and quality of the current evidence for the e...

BACKGROUND There has been no definitive systematic review and meta-analysis to date examining the effect of laxatives and pharmacological therapies in chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC). OBJECTIVE To assess efficacy of these therapies systematically in CIC. DESIGN Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials (RCTs). DATA SOURCES MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane ...

Laxative drugs are usually organized according to their mode of action, i.e. bulk forming agents, stool softeners, lubricants, saline laxatives, stimulants including some combined formulations. Among them, bulk forming laxatives promote the mildest laxation. The popular bulk forming herbal laxatives in Thailand and Southeast Asian countries are dry fruits of hairy basil (Ocimum americanum) and ...

conclusions multiple prescription drug abuse and salt/salty food addiction usually reflects a personality of addiction, which leads to harmful use and dependence. case presentation a 28-year-old woman presented with tetany due to hypocalcemia, hypokalemia and hypomagnesemia. she had a history of laxative and diuretic abuse, and salt craving. psychiatric evaluation revealed a disturbed social hi...

BACKGROUND Constipation is common in palliative care; it can generate considerable suffering due to the unpleasant physical symptoms. In the first Cochrane Review on effectiveness of laxatives for the management of constipation in palliative care patients, published in 2006, no conclusions could be drawn because of the limited number of evaluations. This article describes the first update of th...

We report the case of a 60-year-old woman who presented with weakness and hypokalaemia due to excessive use of laxatives. When the laxatives were withdrawn, she developed severe congestive cardiac failure requiring treatment with a diuretic and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor. There was no underlying cardiac abnormality, and these drugs were eventually stopped with no recurrence of the ...