Constipation: a neglected condition in older emergency department patients

Constipation and fecal impaction are common issues with the potential for significant morbidity in older people presenting to the Emergency Department (ED). While many of these patients present with classical symptoms of constipation or fecal impaction, atypical presentations are also frequent. Thes...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Internal and emergency medicine 2024-10, Vol.19 (7), p.1977-1986
Main Authors: Salvi, Fabio, Petrino, Roberta, Conroy, Simon P., Liperoti, Rosa, Paoletti, Luca, Beccacece, Alessia, dell’Aquila, Giuseppina, Fedecostante, Massimiliano, Cherubini, Antonio
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aging
Analgesics
Anorexia
Anticholinergics
Basal ganglia
Bladder
Central nervous system diseases
Comorbidity
Constipation
Dehydration
Delirium
Dementia
Dementia disorders
Diarrhea
Dietary supplements
Disease
Diuretics
Drugs
Dysphagia
EM - Review
Emergency medical care
Fecal incontinence
Feces
Hypothyroidism
Internal Medicine
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Metabolism
Morbidity
Movement disorders
Neurodegenerative diseases
Nursing homes
Older people
Parkinson's disease
Patients
Pelvis
Syncope
Urinary retention
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Constipation and fecal impaction are common issues with the potential for significant morbidity in older people presenting to the Emergency Department (ED). While many of these patients present with classical symptoms of constipation or fecal impaction, atypical presentations are also frequent. These atypical presentations may include paradoxical diarrhea, fecal incontinence, urinary retention or overflow incontinence, hyperactive or hypoactive delirium, anorexia/dysphagia, and syncope. In addition, various clinical conditions (such as dementia, Parkinson’s disease, dehydration, and hypothyroidism) and medications (such as opiate analgesics, anticholinergics, diuretics, calcium channel blockers, anti-parkinsonian drugs, and oral iron supplements) are associated with constipation and should be considered during the diagnostic process in the ED. This narrative review specifically focuses on the prevalence, presentation, diagnoses, and management of constipation in older ED patients.
ISSN:1828-0447
1970-9366
1970-9366
DOI:10.1007/s11739-024-03724-2