From University Institute for Primary Care (IuMFE), Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland (PS, DMH, HM), University College of General Medicine, University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Lyon, France (CQ, MV), and Mermoz Primary Health Centre, Lyon, France (HM).
J Am Board Fam Med. 2022 Jul-Aug;35(4):836-839. doi: 10.3122/jabfm.2022.04.210474.
Constipation is a common complaint in the general population. Squatting (using a toilet stool) is associated with faster and more complete bowel emptying, and could therefore help prevent or treat constipation. We analyzed the reviews of online buyers of a toilet stool to assess perceived effectiveness, overall satisfaction and potential side effects.
In this exploratory mixed-method study, we collected all plain text reviews left between November 2013 and March 2020 by buyers of a toilet stool on Amazon. We adapted the Framework method to perform a seven-step process to analyze user reviews. We assigned numerical values from -5 (minimum) to +5 (maximum) to perceived effectiveness and overall satisfaction.
We included comments left by 10,027 customers who purchased 19 different types of toilet stools (79.1% seven-inch stools, 16.1% folding stools, 4.8% other stools). Perceived effectiveness and overall satisfaction were high (median = 5 and interquartile range = 0 for both variables). Eighty-one individuals reported adverse events related to toilet stool use, mainly musculoskeletal pain (N = 26), numbness in the lower limbs (N = 16), falls (n = 11), constipation (N = 9), anorectal symptom (N = 8), and cramps (N = 6).
Perceived effectiveness and overall satisfaction were rated high by those who purchased a toilet stool online. In addition, their use seems to be safe (<1% reported adverse effects). Our results suggest a good risk-benefit ratio. The device may offer an inexpensive option to treat or prevent constipation, and may reduce the frequency of medical visits and the risks associated with long-term use of laxatives.
便秘是普通人群常见的抱怨。蹲姿（使用马桶坐便）与更快、更完全的排空肠道有关，因此有助于预防或治疗便秘。我们分析了马桶坐便购买者的在线评论，以评估其感知效果、总体满意度和潜在的副作用。
在这项探索性混合方法研究中，我们收集了 2013 年 11 月至 2020 年 3 月期间亚马逊上购买马桶坐便的购买者留下的所有纯文本评论。我们采用框架法进行了七步分析用户评论。我们将感知效果和总体满意度的数值从-5（最小值）分配到+5（最大值）。
我们纳入了 10027 名顾客的评论，他们购买了 19 种不同类型的马桶坐便（79.1%的为 7 英寸坐便，16.1%的为折叠坐便，4.8%的为其他坐便）。感知效果和总体满意度都很高（中位数=5，四分位距=0）。81 人报告了与使用马桶坐便相关的不良事件，主要为肌肉骨骼疼痛（26 人）、下肢麻木（16 人）、跌倒（11 人）、便秘（9 人）、肛肠症状（8 人）和痉挛（6 人）。
那些在网上购买马桶坐便的人对其感知效果和总体满意度评价较高。此外，其使用似乎是安全的（<1%的人报告不良影响）。我们的结果表明其风险效益比良好。该设备可能为治疗或预防便秘提供一种廉价的选择，并可能减少就诊频率和长期使用泻药相关的风险。
