Khaja M, Thakur C S, Bharathan T, Baccash E, Goldenberg G
New York Methodist Hospital, Brooklyn, New York, NY, USA.
Gerodontology. 2005 Jun;22(2):106-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1741-2358.2005.00061.x.
Chronic constipation is a common and bothersome problem in elderly nursing home patients. Although fibre has a known role in the treatment of constipation, laxatives are still widely used in nursing home patients.
To determine whether the addition of a fibre supplement to oral diet can reduce the use of laxatives in a long-term care facility.
Oral diet of 92 nursing home residents (all older than 65) on chronic laxatives (docusate, milk of magnesia with Cascara, psyllium) was supplemented with 'Fiber 7', a natural powder fibre (7 g per meal twice a day). During the next 2.5 years discontinuation of laxatives was attempted.
Laxatives were successfully discontinued in 63 of the 92 patients (68.5%, 95% confidence interval 59-78%). The fibre supplement was well tolerated. The cost of care was decreased by dollar 3.5 per patient every month or by dollar 220/month for the 63 patients.
Use of 'Fiber 7' allowed discontinuation of laxatives in 63 of 92 nursing home residents. The fibre supplement was a safe and convenient alternative to laxatives and decreased the cost of medical care.
慢性便秘在老年疗养院患者中是一个常见且令人困扰的问题。尽管膳食纤维在便秘治疗中具有已知作用，但泻药仍在疗养院患者中广泛使用。
确定在长期护理机构中，在口服饮食中添加膳食纤维补充剂是否能减少泻药的使用。
92名长期服用泻药（多库酯钠、含番泻叶的氧化镁乳、车前草籽）的疗养院居民（均超过65岁），其口服饮食中添加了一种天然粉末状膳食纤维“纤维7”（每餐7克，每日两次）。在接下来的2.5年里，尝试停用泻药。
92名患者中有63名（68.5%，95%置信区间59 - 78%）成功停用了泻药。膳食纤维补充剂耐受性良好。每位患者每月护理费用降低了3.5美元，63名患者每月共降低220美元。
使用“纤维7”使92名疗养院居民中的63名停用了泻药。膳食纤维补充剂是一种安全便捷的泻药替代品，降低了医疗护理成本。
