Background: Older people are susceptible for constipation, resulting in high prevalence particularly among those who are hospitalized. Poor mobility and longer stay in hospital are some of the indication for constipation to occur among them. Thus, understanding of its health-related impact among hospitalized elderly is essential for early identification and management of chronic constipation.
Objective: This study aims to determine the prevalence of constipation in hospitalized elderly and to investigate the impacts of symptom severity on their quality of life.
Methods: A cross-sectional sample of elderly patients were recruited from two medical wards (N=30). Subjects were initially screened for constipation using the Malay language Rome III diagnostic questionnaires. Severity of constipation and specific health-related quality of life were assessed using Patient-Assessment of Constipation Symptoms (PAC-SYM) and Patient-Assessment of Constipation Quality of Life (PAC-QOL). Differences between the scores were evaluated using independent t-test.
Results: Overall, only 14 of the elderly (47%) had constipation and were included in this study. The majority was female (64%). Constipation symptom severity was indicated between mild and moderate (M=11.77, SD=9.11), with stool symptoms domain were commonly reported compared to abdominal symptoms and rectal symptoms domains. Significant difference was indicated between the mean scores of PAC-SYM and PAC-QOL in patients with and without constipation at the p<0.05 level.
Conclusion: The prevalence of constipation in the elderly hospitalized patients was high and it obviously compromised their quality of life. Further research in larger scale and on symptom severity impacting the elderly’s quality of life is required particularly in patients who do not meet the Rome III criteria
