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So in summary, constipation. As we mentioned, constipation is a symptom characterized by when a patient has either difficulty passing a stool normally, and especially if the patient hasn’t passed a stool within five days time. Now, there are a number of reasons why this may occur. If there’s a decrease in the amount of fiber in the diet or if there’s a decrease in the amount of fluid that a patient consumes, or if a patient is taking medications such as pain medication, which may slow down intestinal transit. What to do about it. If you notice that you have any of the warning signs, rectal bleeding, losing weight, pain, which is relatively not easily controlled, and this goes on for several days, you should bring this to the attention of your physician. We talked about testing and how most individuals who are in good health, you want to do a good history and physical, and then try some things to see if you can get the bowels moving. But if you have any warning signs, bleeding, weight loss, fever, intractable pain, then further investigation is required.
