Description and Comparison of Diagnostic Criteria in Childhood Functional Constipation / 实用儿科临床杂志

ABSTRACT

Functional constipation(FC) in childhood is characterized by a low defecation frequency in combination with either involuntary loss of stools(encopresis),passage of large amounts of stool,retentive posturing,or hard and often painful defecation.It represents 3%-5% of general pediatric outpatient visits and up to 25% of pediatric gastroenterology consultations.FC is a diagnosis made by history and physical examination.No testing is necessary or desirable.The decision to seek medical care for symptoms arises from a parent′s or caretaker′s concern for children.The caretaker′s threshold for concern varies with his or her experiences and expectations,coping style,and perception of illness,till now there is not an universal native criteria established in spite of much has been done in it.The criteria used are still to draw assistance from the foreign standard,among which the classic criteria,the Rome Ⅱ and Rome Ⅲ criteria are considered commonly used.The purpose of this paper is to descript the several foreign criteria,and to make comparison among them,and to explore their applicability and effectiveness in childhood FC