Abstract

Enfoque del paciente con constipación. Rev Col Gastroenterol [online]. 2003, vol.18, n.3, pp. 168-175. ISSN 0120-9957.

Even though functional disorders of the lower gastrointestinal tract do not usually constitute an emergency they will certainly estimulate the physician to be imaginative in the diagnostic and therapeutical approach. Constipation is one of those functional colorectal disorder, whose definition is not clearly precise, because it has a great variability and depends much in the patient´s own subjective appreciation. A significant amount of health care dollars are spent annually in the diagnosis and treatment of it, which converts it in a public health problem. The prevalence increases with age having a bimodal presentation: in the adolescence especially females and in the group of elderly. Our objective is to propose a simple but complete guide for the diagnosis and treatment of patients with constipation.

Keywords : constipation; fiber; functional disorder; laxatives; fecal bulking formers.