Encopresis is a bowel disorder that occurs when excessive stool gets accumulated in your colon and rectum. As your colon fills up with impacted stool, liquid stool can leak around it and then out of the anus. Therefore, you may notice stains on your underwear, especially when you wake up in the morning. While anyone can suffer from encopresis, this condition is a lot more common in boys. Given below are some of the most common causes of male encopresis:
- Constipation: If you avoid going to the bathroom because your stools are hard and difficult to pass, this could be the reason you are suffering from this problem. The longer the hardened stool remains in the colon, the worse the problem gets. Over a period of time, your colon begins to stretch, which has an adverse effect on the nerves that signal the passage of stools. When the colon fills up, the softer stools leak out without you realizing it.
- Emotional Issues: In case you notice skid marks on your child’s underwear, check if your child is undergoing any kind of stress or trauma. When kids are toilet-trained prematurely or go through drastic life changes may face a lot of emotional instability, which triggers off encopresis. Some children are afraid of going to the bathroom alone, especially at night, because of which they may develop this condition.
- Use of Medication: Very often, certain medicines lead to adverse side effects such as severe constipation and encopresis. If you are using anticonvulsant drugs, antidepressants, anti-spasmodic drugs, antacids or iron supplements, do mention the side effects you are facing, to your doctor.
- Nerve Damage: In some instances, encopresis could be an indication of a deeper, underlying medical condition that has triggered off nerve damage. If you notice stains on your underwear very often, your doctor may advise you to undergo tests to rule out the possibility of scleroderma, lupus, lead poisoning or multiple sclerosis.
- Intestinal Blockage: The presence of certain obstructions in the colon could cause the stool to collect excessively. These generally include tumors, inflamed adhesions, hernia and gallstones.
- Unhealthy Habits: You may be at a higher risk of bowel problems in case you lead a sedentary lifestyle. Poor dietary habits such as lack of adequate water and fiber or junk food bingeing could also cause encopresis.
Some of the reasons for male encopresis are quite serious and require immediate medical attention. Therefore, it is important to consult a doctor as soon as you notice the symptoms of this condition.
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answered by G R