Constipation is one of the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome. Women are especially subject to IBS. They frequently suffer from abdominal discomfort or pain, bloating, and constipation.
Constipation can be defined as a bowel pattern including infrequent bowel movements, hard or lumpy stools, problems with passing stools, incomplete elimination, and/or straining with a bowel movement. However, constipation differs from person to person. Some patients with chronic constipation cannot even pass stools, while others pass hard lumpy stools.
IBS is a chronic disease, characterized by abdominal pain or discomfort connected with altered bowel habits. Abdominal pain or discomfort is the most common symptom of IBS. It’s reported by 66% of patients. Other symptoms of IBS are: bloating, urgency, and/or cramps of the stomach.
IBS is divided into three subtypes, based on bowel habits;
* IBS with diarrhea (IBS-D)
* IBS with constipation (IBS-C) and
* IBS with alternating diarrhea and constipation (IBS-A).
SYMPTOMS OF IBS-C
Symptoms of IBS-C:
* Abdominal discomfort results in cramps, spasms and/or pain in the area of the abdomen and colon.
* Bloating- a tight feeling in the abdomen area triggered by excessive gas in the intestines. Here the intestines feel uncomfortable and the abdomen appears swollen as if full of gas.
* Constipation seems to be different for each patient. For some people it can be sporadic bowel movements, hard stools, problems with passing stools or straining with bowel movement, inability to have a bowel movement, incomplete elimination, or a combination of all the mentioned constipation symptoms.
CAUSES
It is not exactly known why some people develop IBS with constipation while others don’t. In the past patients were informed that their problems resulted from stress or something they ate. Nowadays, the causes IBS-C are better known to specialists. This disease occurs due to the fact some people’s gastrointestinal tract is more sensitive, and it works more slowly than it should. Probably, this results from the way the gastrointestinal tract reacts to changes in the levels of serotonin. It is a chemical substance in human’s body occurring naturally, which plays an essential role in making our gastric tract work correctly.
TREATMENT
Zelnorm is a short-term medication for women with IBS with constipation. However, this medication works not for all women and it is not effective for men with the same condition. In April 2004 the FDA issued a warning concerning the severe side effects with Zelnorm. These side effects are; diarrhea, low blood pressure, episodes of fainting. A high fiber diet can also help ease the symptoms of IBS-C.
