A new ultrasound scoring system for assessing the severity of constipation in children

Abstract

US is an easy and quick tool that can be used in the out-patient setting to assess severity of constipation. The new US scoring system is a reliable method that can be used in conjunction with clinical examination for assessing the long-term improvement of children who are undergoing treatment for chronic constipation.

Diagnosis and follow-up in constipated children: should we use ultrasound?

“…This incidence had decreased in the constipated patients after treatment (61% and 68%), and this result was statistically significant. Fecal load has been reported to be important in the literature, and it was observed that the rectum diameter was larger in the presence of a mass on rectal examination [4,7]. Enuresis and recurrent urinary tract infections are found in 30% of constipated children.…”

“…There are a few studies that have evaluated the rectum width in children with pelvic US in recent years [4][5][6][7]. The rectum diameter has been measured in 3 of these studies, whereas one has only evaluated how full the colon was with feces.…”

“…Constipation usually begins a short time after toilet training is given, and no organic cause can be found in 90% to 95% of the children [1,8]. The most common cause of constipation in children is functional fecal retention after voluntary holding of feces and is thought to lead to megarectum development in time [4,5]. The Rome III criteria are currently used for the evaluation and definition of constipation [9].…”

“…Long-standing constipation causes dilatation of the rectum and sigmoid that in turn influences the response to and duration of treatment. Although contrast enema study is generally used to evaluate a distended rectum (megarectum), there have been recent studies on using ultrasonography (US) for the same purpose [2][3][4][5][6][7].…”

Overactive Bladder in Children

“…This ratio is able to detect rectal distention associated with urinary symptoms when it is greater than 1 [28]. There have been studies regarding the detection of abnormal rectal distention with ultrasound as well [30].…”