Pediatrics Functional Constipation and school-Whether are linked?

Background: Functional Constipation (FC) is one of the important digestive disorders in pediatrics. Its prevalence varies in different communities. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of FC in our area between the school children and the impact of school on it. Methods: This study was done on 4 to 12 years old children of nine schools and kindergartens of Amirkola, (2007). After completing the constipation questionnaires by parents and children, all constipated children referred to gastroenterologist to confirm the diagnosis of functional constipation. All children were followed in summer when they didn’t go to school and in next year-the winter of 2009. Age, sex, the incidence of constipation in the school time and the summer holiday, health status of the toilets in school and the age of children were recorded when they learned to clean themselves. Results: Of all 493 studied cases the prevalence of FC was 21.3% (105 cases). There was no significant difference between the genders (p=0.913). All 99 constipated cases were reevaluated for constipation in summer and only 25 (18 boys and 7girls) of them were constipate. In the next school year the number of constipated case reaches to 90 cases again that there was significant relation between constipation and school months (p<0.01). Conclusions: The prevalence of FC in children was significantly high and school attendance had a great impact on it. We advise that the awareness of school officials and parents can reduce the prevalence of FC.