What Is The Difference Between Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Constipation
Constipation
is a symptom of many people suffering with irritable
bowel syndrome. Women who are especially susceptible
to IBS often suffer from abdominal discomfort
or pain, bloating, and constipation.
Constipation is broadly defined as
a bowel pattern that includes infrequent bowel
movements, hard or lumpy stools, difficulty in
passing stools, incomplete elimination, and/or
straining with a bowel movement. However, constipation
varies from person to person. Some people with
chronic constipation cannot even pass stools,
while others pass hard lumpy stools.
Irritable
bowel syndrome is a chronic disorder that
is characterized by abdominal pain or discomfort
associated with altered bowel habits. Abdominal
pain or discomfort is the most common symptom
of IBS and is reported by 66% of patients. Other
symptoms of IBS include bloating, urgency, and/or
cramps of the stomach.
IBS is divided into
3 subtypes, based on bowel habits;
- IBS with diarrhea (IBS-D)
- IBS with constipation (IBS-C) and
- IBS with alternating diarrhea and constipation
(IBS-A).
Symptoms Of IBS-C
Symptoms of IBS-C include;
- Abdominal discomfort causes cramps, spasms
and/or pain in the area of the abdomen and colon.
- Bloating is a tight feeling in the abdomen
area caused by excessive gas in the intestines.
Here the intestines feel uncomfortable and the
abdomen appears swollen as if full of gas.
- Constipation is different for everyone. For
some it can be sporadic bowel movements, hard
stools, difficulty in passing stools or straining
with bowel movement, inability to have a bowel
movement, incomplete elimination, or a combination
of all the mentioned constipation symptoms.
Causes
There is no clear reason why some people develop
IBS with constipation and others do not. Initially
people were told that their condition was simply
a result of stress or something they ate or did
not eat. However now there exists a greater understanding
of what causes IBS-C. It is because some people
have a more sensitive gastrointestinal tract than
others, which works more slowly than it should.
This is possibly due to the way the gastrointestinal
tract reacts to changes in serotonin levels. Serotonin
is a naturally occurring chemical in your body,
which plays a vital role in making your gastric
tract work normally.
Treatment
Zelnorm is a short-term drug used to treatment
of women who have Irritable Bowel Syndrome with
constipation. Zelnorm does not work for all women
and has no effect on men with IBS. In April 2004
the FDA issued a warning about the serious side
effects caused by Zelnorm which include; diarrhea,
low blood pressure, and episodes of fainting.
A high fiber diet can also help ease the symptoms
of IBS-C. |
