Johanson J F, Lafferty J
Department of Medicine, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford 61107-5078, USA.
Am J Gastroenterol. 1996 Jan;91(1):33-6.
Fecal incontinence represents an embarrassing social problem, the magnitude of which remains largely unknown. The present study prospectively examined the prevalence and demographic distributions of fecal incontinence.
demographic data, in addition to information regarding the reason for visit, bowel habits, and the frequency, type, and severity of fecal incontinence, were collected from individuals at the time of visits to their primary care physician or gastroenterologist.
Eight hundred and eighty-one individuals 18 yr or older were included in the analysis. The overall prevalence of fecal incontinence was 18.4%. When stratified by frequency, 2.7, 4.5, and 7.1% of participants admitted to incontinence daily, weekly, or once per month or less, respectively. Incontinence increased progressively with age and was 1.3 times more common in males than females. Only one-third of individuals with fecal incontinence had ever discussed the problem with a physician.
The prevalence of fecal incontinence appears to be more common than previously appreciated. Moreover, only a minority with a physician. It would seem important to more actively pursue this "silent affliction" particularly in patients who do not readily volunteer this information.
大便失禁是一个令人尴尬的社会问题，其严重程度在很大程度上仍不为人知。本研究前瞻性地调查了大便失禁的患病率及人口统计学分布情况。
在患者就诊于初级保健医生或胃肠病专家时，收集其人口统计学数据，以及有关就诊原因、排便习惯、大便失禁的频率、类型和严重程度等信息。
纳入分析的为881名18岁及以上的个体。大便失禁的总体患病率为18.4%。按频率分层时，分别有2.7%、4.5%和7.1%的参与者承认每天、每周或每月一次及以下存在大便失禁。大便失禁患病率随年龄增长而逐渐升高，男性患病率是女性的1.3倍。只有三分之一的大便失禁患者曾与医生讨论过该问题。
大便失禁的患病率似乎比之前认为的更为常见。此外，只有少数患者与医生讨论过该问题。对于这种“隐性疾病”，更积极地去探寻似乎很重要，尤其是对于那些不会主动提供此信息的患者。
