If you have fewer than three bowel movements per week, frequent difficulty starting a bowel movement, or pain while passing stool, you may be suffering from chronic constipation.
The good news is that constipation itself is rarely associated with a serious medical condition. However, if left untreated, chronic constipation can lead to more serious medical consequences.
Let’s talk about what can happen if you have chronic constipation, and where you can go in Austin for a medical evaluation and appropriate treatment for your gastrointestinal issues.
Causes of Chronic Constipation
Constipation occurs when stool remains in the colon (large intestine) too long, and so it becomes hard and dry because the colon is absorbing too much water from the stool. Several physical factors can contribute to this, such as:
- Eating too little fiber (fruit, vegetables, and cereals)
- Eating large amounts of milk and cheese
- Immobility and/or lack of sufficient exercise
- Drinking too little fluid
- Being overweight or underweight
- Having a fever
Chronic constipation can also stem from psychological issues, such as stress, anxiety, depression, or experiencing trauma.
Whatever the cause of your chronic constipation, it should not be ignored because it can be a precursor of a far worse condition.
What Can Happen Due to Chronic Constipation?
If your constant constipation is not treated, it could result in:
- Hemorrhoids – Hemorrhoids, which are sometimes also called “piles,” are swollen blood vessels that form in the lower rectum and anus – often as a result of chronic constipation. They can cause pain, itching, and swelling around the anus.
- Rectal bleeding – This can occur due to the continual straining to pass stool, resulting in an anal fissure or small tear around the anus.
- Fecal impaction – Long-term constipation can result in dried, hard stools accumulating in your rectum. Because the anal pathway is thereby becoming obstructed, it is more difficult for stool and waste to pass through naturally. This can lead to swelling of the rectum, bowel incontinence, and bleeding from the anus.
- Rectal prolapse – Straining to produce a bowel movement can damage your pelvic floor muscles that control your bladder. When this happens, the lower end of your large intestine can fall out of place and actually protrude from your anus, which is a rectal prolapse. Too much straining over a long period of time may also cause stress urinary incontinence, which is leakage of urine from the bladder due to pressure.
- Diverticulitis – When stool becomes trapped in the intestine, it can trigger inflammation in tiny pouches that form off of the colon wall. This is called diverticulitis, and it can result in abdominal pain, fever, and nausea.
Gastrointestinal Relief in Austin, Texas
Our skilled medical team here at Austin Gastroenterology provides state-of-the-art health treatment designed to eliminate the pain and pressure of constipation.
If you are suffering from chronic constipation, call Austin Gastroenterology today. Our gastroenterologists and GI doctors see patients in 18 offices throughout the greater Austin area.
To schedule an appointment, call our location near you or fill out our convenient appointment request form online now. We look forward to being your healthcare partner!
