Functional Constipation in Children: Health Teaching to Prevent ER Intervention

A major cause of bowel dysfunction in children is functional or idiopathic constipation. Functional constipation is very common in childhood and if left untreated can become chronic resulting in great distress for the child and family. Functional constipation needs to be recognized early and treated by knowledgeable health care professionals including NSWOCs. Although not all NSWOCs work with children, many have children in their lives so this topic may be of personal interest to all.