Constipation
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Reviewed By:
Aiko Yoshioka, MD (Gastroenterology)
Dr. Yoshioka graduated from the Niigata University School of Medicine. He worked as a gastroenterologist at Saiseikai Niigata Hospital and Niigata University Medical & Dental Hospital before serving as the Deputy Chief of Gastroenterology at Tsubame Rosai Hospital and Nagaoka Red Cross Hospital. Dr. Yoshioka joined Saitama Saiseikai Kawaguchi General Hospital as Chief of Gastroenterology in April 2018.
Unnati Patel, MD, MSc (GP / Family doctor)
Dr Patel graduated from the Zhejiang University School of Medicine. She worked in clinical research at the University of Illinois in Chicago and University of Nevada in Las Vegas focused on culturally adapted health interventions for preventive medicine in the community setting. Received her Master's of Science in Global Health (concentration in Health Policy) from Georgetown University, during which she worked with the WHO in Sierra Leone and Save the Children in Washington, D.C. Unnati went on to complete her family medicine residency in Chicago, Illinois at Norwegian American Hospital. | | She is currently working as a primary care physician in the city of Chicago and completing her Master's of Business Administration at the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management and Fellowship in Leadership in Value-Based Care.
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People with these symptoms also use Ubie's symptom checker to find possible causes
Slow bowel movements
Feeling of incomplete bowel emptying
Recent stool was hard and small
Find it hard to poop
I want to poop but don't come out
Recent stool was like a pellet.
Hard and dry stool
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Content updated on Jan 4, 2023
About the symptom
Constipation is defined as having less than three bowel movements per week, hard, dry, or lumpy stools, stools that are difficult or unpleasant to pass, or a feeling that not all stool has passed.
When to see a doctor
Seek professional care if you experience any of the following symptoms
Family history of colorectal cancer
Edema
Abdominal pain
Decrease in stool caliber
Possible causes
- Constipation
Difficulty passing stool. Constipation can also refer to a decrease in stool quantity (e.g. passing stool every day but only small amounts). It can be caused by a variety of things, including dietary habits, mobility, illnesses and medications.
- Aerophagia
Excessive and repetitive swallowing of air, resulting in symptoms of burping and flatulence. It can be caused by psychological reasons or habits, or use of machines that assist in breathing (CPAP machines).
- Hypothyroidism
A disorder where levels of thyroid hormone in the body are abnormally low. These hormones are needed for growth, development and metabolism.
- Meckel's diverticulosis
- Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)
- Hemorrhoid
- Colon cancer
- Anorexia nervosa / bulimia nervosa
- Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
- Ovarian cyst
Questions your doctor may ask about this symptom
Your doctor may ask these questions to check for this symptom
Do you have hard stools or constipation recently?
Do you often have the urge to pass motion but are unable to do so?
Are your stools hard and shaped like pellets? (like that of a rabbit)
Do you have a fever?
Is there blood in your stool?
Other Related Symptoms
Similar symptoms or complaints
Symptoms from the same body system / part
Symptoms treated by the same specialty
References
Constipation
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/constipation/
Reviewed By:
Aiko Yoshioka, MD (Gastroenterology)
Dr. Yoshioka graduated from the Niigata University School of Medicine. He worked as a gastroenterologist at Saiseikai Niigata Hospital and Niigata University Medical & Dental Hospital before serving as the Deputy Chief of Gastroenterology at Tsubame Rosai Hospital and Nagaoka Red Cross Hospital. Dr. Yoshioka joined Saitama Saiseikai Kawaguchi General Hospital as Chief of Gastroenterology in April 2018.
Unnati Patel, MD, MSc (GP / Family doctor)
Dr Patel graduated from the Zhejiang University School of Medicine. She worked in clinical research at the University of Illinois in Chicago and University of Nevada in Las Vegas focused on culturally adapted health interventions for preventive medicine in the community setting. Received her Master's of Science in Global Health (concentration in Health Policy) from Georgetown University, during which she worked with the WHO in Sierra Leone and Save the Children in Washington, D.C. Unnati went on to complete her family medicine residency in Chicago, Illinois at Norwegian American Hospital. | | She is currently working as a primary care physician in the city of Chicago and completing her Master's of Business Administration at the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management and Fellowship in Leadership in Value-Based Care.
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Developed by doctors.
Ubie is supervised by 50+ medical experts worldwide
Seiji Kanazawa, MD, PHD
Obstetrics and gynecology (OBGYN)
National Center for Child Health and Development, Japan