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Parental and patient perceptions about encopresis and its treatment
A C Bernard-Bonnin1, N Haley, S Bélanger
1Department of Pediatrics, University of Montréal, Queébec, Canada.
Insights
Childhood encopresis, or fecal incontinence, is a chronic condition. Even with good understanding and acceptance of treatments like dietary changes and toilet routines, recovery rates remain low after 3.5 years.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Gastroenterology
- Child Psychology
Background:
- Encopresis in children presents significant challenges for families.
- Secondary encopresis requires long-term management and understanding of contributing factors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate children's and parents' understanding of encopresis.
- To evaluate opinions on current treatment modalities for encopresis.
- To assess long-term recovery rates in children with encopresis.
Main Methods:
- A parent/child mail questionnaire was administered to families diagnosed between 1984-1989.
- Data collected included understanding of encopresis, perceived causes, and treatment effectiveness.
- Response rate was 28 families (20 boys, 8 girls) with a mean child age of 9.8 years.
Main Results:
- Intestinal dysfunction (53%) and painful defecation (46%) were identified as primary causes.
- Dietary changes were favored by parents (p < .01), while children found regular toilet routines most helpful.
- Despite good comprehension and acceptance, the complete recovery rate after 3.5 years was only 35.7%.
Conclusions:
- Encopresis is a persistent condition in a significant proportion of children.
- Patient and parental knowledge, along with treatment acceptance, do not guarantee complete recovery.
- Further research into effective long-term management strategies for childhood encopresis is warranted.
Abstract:
Treatment of encopresis in childhood is often a long and trying process. Children followed for secondary encopresis in a multidisciplinary clinic between 1984 and 1989 were sent a parent/child mail questionnaire seeking information on their understanding of encopresis as well as their opinions on current treatment modalities. Twenty-eight families responded (20 boys and 8 girls), the child's mean age was 9.8 years, and the mean time elapsed after diagnosis was 3.5 years. Parents and children reported that intestinal dysfunction (53%) and painful defecation (46%) were the most important causes of their encopresis. Treatment modalities including enemas were well accepted by both parents and children, with parents considering dietary changes the most useful treatment modality (p < .01). Children reported that regular "toilet routine" was the most helpful in reestablishing continence. Despite good comprehension of the problem and acceptance of the treatment modalities, the complete recovery rate after 3.5 years was only 35.7%, with no differences noted between responders and nonresponders. Encopresis is a chronic condition that persists in a significant proportion of patients, despite adequate patient and parental knowledge and patient acceptance of treatment.