Risk and main contributing factors for constipation in patients with gastrointestinal cancer: a multicenter...

The purpose of this study is to determine the risk of constipation and to identify the significant risk factors for constipation in patients with gastrointestinal cancer using the Chinese version of the constipation risk assessment scale (CRAS-C), as well as to explore the complementary constipation risk factors in patients with gastrointestinal cancer, to improve the specificity of the CRAS-C in this population, and finally to provide a theoretical basis for constipation prevention.

A cross-sectional study involving multiple centers was conducted. A total of 190 patients with gastrointestinal cancer completed surveys that included demographic information, defecation habits, and the CRAS-C. The mean, SD, median, maximum, minimum, frequency, and percentage were used as indicators for the constipation risk and significant risk factors. The t test and Chi-square tests were used to analyze constipation indicators in patients with gastrointestinal cancer.

The mean (SD) age of the 190 participants was 61.68 (12.35) years. The total CRAS-C mean (SD) score was 13.22 (4.69). Fifty-one patients (26.8%) scored lower than 11, who were at the low-risk level of constipation. One hundred thirty-nine patients (73.2%) scored 11 or above, who were at the high-risk level of constipation. The top 10 factors were insufficient liquid intake (81.1%), failure to consume bran products daily (78.9%), insufficient fiber intake (77.9%), antiemetics (74.7%), cytotoxic chemotherapy (52.6%), colorectal/abdominal diseases (42.6%), female (35.3%), opioid analgesics(26.8%), calcium channel blockers (16.3%), and endocrine disorders (14.2%). Chi-square test showed that constipating for most of the past 3 months, ascites and ECOG score were complementary constipation risk factors in gastrointestinal cancer patients.

The findings indicate that most gastrointestinal cancer patients were at a high risk of constipation. There are also several complementary constipation risk factors, and CRAS-C can be further revised in future studies to make it more specific in gastrointestinal cancer patients. Integrating CRAS into the pathway of constipation management, carrying out constipation risk screening for hospitalized cancer patients, and building systematic constipation prevention plan based on risk assessment are important to reduce the incidence of constipation in patients with gastrointestinal cancer and improve the quality of life.