Holistic approach to chronic constipation

By "holistic approach" (greek "olos" = "all") we mean a clinical approach which is not only confined to the diseased segment of the body, say the inert large bowel or the spastic pelvic floor in case of constipation, but takes under consideration the whole "mind and body complex", which is a unique indivisible entity. According to a prospective study carried out in our Unit and under press in Colorectal Disease, 66% of the patients with obstructed defecation suffer either from anxiety or depression, thus showing the major role played by an altered psyche in the etiology of their constipation.