Functional constipation entities

Clinic

• Functional constipation = Chronic idiopathic constipation (CIC)
• CIC is constipation that does not have a physical (anatomical) or physiological (hormonal or other body chemistry) cause. It may have a neurological, psychological or psychosomatic cause. A person with functional constipation may be healthy, yet has difficulty defecating.

Symptoms

• Chronic idiopathic constipation is similar to constipation-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-C) but they do not have other symptoms of IBS, such as abdominal pain.

Possible causes are:

• Anismus
• Descending perineum syndrome
• Other inability or unwillingness to control the external anal sphincter, which normally is under voluntary control
• A poor diet
• An unwillingness to defecate
• Nervous reactions, including prolonged and/or chronic stress and anxiety, that close the internal anal sphincter, a muscle that is not under voluntary control
• Deeper psychosomatic disorders which sometimes affect digestion and the absorption of water in the colon

There is also possibility of presentation with other comorbid symptoms such as headache, especially in children.