Epidemiology of constipation in São Paulo, Brazil: a population-based study.

AbstractObjective:Epidemiologic data on constipation in South America are limited. The main objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of self-reported symptoms of constipation in Brazil.Methods:Telephone and personal surveys were conducted among community-dwelling adults in homes with land-based telephones in Sao Paulo. Data were weighted by numbers of adults, total residents, and telephones in each household. To account for potential nonresponse and noncoverage bias, results were further adjusted according to Brazilian census data.Results:Among 4570 households contacted, 3050 adults (66.7%) participated. Respondents (mean [SE] age: 42.6 [2.7] years) were primarily women (53.1%). A minority of all respondents reported symptoms consistent with constipation, including a perception of incomplete voiding in 8.0%; expending efforts to defecate in 7.6%; ≤2 stools weekly in 9.0%; and hard stools in 12.7%. Prevalences of these symptoms and efforts to manage them were more frequent in women (P ≤ 0.004),...