Korean J Fam Med.  2010 Jan;31(1):35-43. 10.4082/kjfm.2010.31.1.35.

The Impact of Functional Constipation on the Quality of Life in the Elderly over 60 Years

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Family Medicine, Konkuk University School of Medicine, Chungju, Korea. hyunjindo@daum.net

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Constipation is one of the most common digestive complaints. Although, there are increased interest on the socioeconomic effect of constipation and studies associated with quality of life on constipation, there is no study about the influence of constipation onto quality of life (QOL) in Korea. We studied the impact of functional constipation on QOL.
METHODS
Between March to June 2008, person to person survey with 844 elderly aged over 60 years was performed at two senior care centers, a public health center, and secondary hospital in Seoul metrocity and Chung-ju city. The diagnosis of functional constipation was based on the Rome III criteria and QOL was measured by the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS) 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36).
RESULTS
The average age was 73.6 years and the prevalence rate of constipation was 20.3%. The average SF-36 score was 63.5 in total population, 57.9 in constipation group, and 64.9 in normal group.
CONCLUSION
These results suggest that the constipation lowers QOL in adults aged over 60 years old. Further study will be necessary to explore if QOL changes according to the severity of constipation and its treatment and to assess QOL using a disease-specific measurement tool that can be used for Korean environment.

Keyword

Elderly; Constipation; Quality of Life

MeSH Terms

Adult
Aged
Constipation
Health Surveys
Humans
Korea
Prevalence
Public Health
Quality of Life
Rome
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