Today is our topic of discussion Factors Affecting Bowel Elimination.
Factors Affecting Bowel Elimination
FACTORS AFFECTING BOWEL ELIMINATION
Age and development: There is a marked difference between the stools of an infant and an older person. The very young are unable to control elimination until the neuromuscular system is developed, usually between the ages of 2 to 3 years.
Daily patterns: Most people have regular patterns of bowel elimination which include frequency, timing considerations, position and place changes in any of these may upset a person routine and actually lead to constipation.
Lifestyles: Many individuals’ family and sociocultural variables influences a persons usual elimination habits. The long-term effect of bowel training, the availability of toilet facilities, embarrassment about odors and need to privacy, also affect the fecal elimination patterns.
Fluids: Both the type and amount of fluid ingested affect elimination. Healthy fecal elimination is facilitated by a daily intake of 2000 to 3000 mL.
Activity and muscle tone: Regular exercise improves gastrointestinal motility and muscle tone while inactivity decreases both. Adequate tone in the abdominal muscles, the diaphragm and the perineal muscles is essential to case in defecation.
Psychological factors: Emotional stress affects the body in many ways. Persons with anxiety causes increased intestinal motility and persons with depression causes slower intestinal motility resulting in constipation.
Pathological conditions: Spinal cord and head injuries decrease sensory stimulation for defecation. Impaired mobility limits the patient’s ability to respond to the urge to defecate. Ribbon like stools in appearance due to tumor in the colon.
Medications: Narcotic analgesics cause constipation by decreased gastrointestinal mobility. Many medications have diarrhea as undesirable side effect.
Diagnostic procedure: Barium salts used in radiologic examinations. It Hardens if allowed to remain in the colon, producing constipation and sometimes an impaction.
Surgery and anesthesia: Direct manipulation of the bowel during abdominal surgery inhibits peristalsis causing a condition termed as paralytic ileus. General anesthetic agents that are inhaled also inhibit peristalsis by blocking the parasympathetic impulses to the intestinal muscle.
Irritants: Spicy, foods, bacterial toxins and poisons can irritate the intestinal tract and produce diarrhea and often large amounts of flatus.
Pain: Patients who are experience discomfort when defecating, e.g. following hemorrhoid surgery will often suppress the urge to defecate to avoid the pain.
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