ABSTRACT
The prevalence of constipation in the female general population is reported between 2.8% and 35.4% ( 3-9 ). Higgins and Johanson estimated that 12% of the North American population fulfilled the Rome 2 criteria for constipation (4) . There is great variation in the individual perception of constipation. Sandler and Drossman surveyed healthy young adults on their understanding of constipation (10) . Half defined constipation as straining to pass feces, 44% considered it to be the passage of hard stool, 32% associated infrequent bowel movements with constipation, and 34% described it as the inability to defecate at will. Nyam et al. performed physiological studies on 1009 patients with severe chronic constipation and found 13% had STC, 25% had obstructed constipation, and 3% had a combination of the two (11) . Obstructed constipation and combined STC with obstructed constipation are more common in women and often present with intractable symptoms. These women may require combined input from gynecologists, gastroenterologists, colorectal surgeons, urologists, physiotherapists, and nurse specialists.
