The general well-being of patients with chronic constipation is lower than that of a comparable normal population. Symptom severity correlates negatively with perceived quality of life.

Symptoms are good predictors of transit time but poorer predictors of pelvic floor function in patients with constipation.

Biofeedback therapy improved continence immediately after training and at follow-up after 21 months, but the initial results were better. The urge fecal incontinence seems to be related to function of the external anal sphincter and to the maximum tolerable volume. Low maximum tolerable volume and anal sphincter asymmetry were associated with a poor outcome of therapy.

Our results suggest that biofeedback, using either manometry or EMG, is effective in improving symptoms and anorectal function caused by paradoxical puborectalis contraction.

Patients' median age at the time of the operation was 46 (range, 23-70) years, and the median duration of constipation was 31 (range, 11-65) years. One patient died 21 days after the operation. Three patients developed intestinal pseudo-obstruction after the operation, and two of these died during the follow-up period. Fourteen patients were available for follow-up after a median of five (range, 4-7) years. Bowel frequency was significantly increased from a median of 0 (range, 0-2) times per week to a median of 30 (range, 10-102) times per week after surgery (P<0.001). The incidence of abdominal pain decreased from 94 to 43 percent. Seven of 13 patients (54 percent) continued to have bloating. At long-term follow-up, 12 of 14 patients (86 percent) reported that they had an overall improvement after surgery, despite continuing pain and bloating in a significant proportion of them. The outcome of surgery was good or excellent in seven of seven patients with normal findings on antroduodenal manometry, but only five of nine patients with abnormal manometry findings attained a good result after surgery. We found a trend (P=0.09) toward better long-term results after surgery for slow-transit constipation in patients with a normal antroduodenal manometry before the operation.