Constipation is difficulty passing hard, infrequent stools, while fecal impaction is a severe complication where a large, hard mass of stool gets stuck in the colon or rectum, blocking it completely and preventing normal bowel movements. Impaction is often the result of untreated chronic constipation, where stool dries out over time, and while constipation makes it hard to go, impaction makes it impossible to pass the blockage, sometimes causing liquid stool to leak around it (overflow soiling).
Inability to pass stool regularly, hard, dry, and lumpy stools, abdominal pain or bloating, and disturbed gastrointestinal processes are signs of constipation. However, if you have the urge to pass stool but feel something blocked inside the intestines, or feel liquid stool leaking, it is a sign of fecal impaction.
Treating faecal impaction
One type is a laxative to help soften the poo to make it easier to pass. This is usually a macrogol such as Movicol or Laxido. You drink these types of laxatives. Other laxatives you might have to treat faecal impaction, are an enema or suppository.
Distinguishing between constipation and an intestinal blockage is key to proper treatment. Symptoms like abdominal pain, vomiting, and a swollen belly can indicate a blockage. Not being able to pass gas or poop is a key symptom that requires medical attention.
Constipation can cause a lot of uncomfortable symptoms, including stomach pain and pressure or gas. Constipation can also cause nausea and dizziness, especially if you're also dehydrated. The nausea that comes along with constipation may feel like persistent queasiness or an unsettled stomach.
Key Symptoms of Gastric Vertigo
Feeling like the room is spinning. Stomach bloating or gas. Nausea or vomiting. Sudden weakness after meals.
SBO presents with hallmark symptoms of abdominal pain, vomiting, distension, and obstipation. The pathophysiology includes bowel distension, impaired venous return, mucosal ischemia, bacterial translocation, and, in severe cases, necrosis, perforation, and peritonitis.
The 3-6-9 rule is a guideline for interpreting abdominal X-rays to detect bowel obstruction, stating normal upper limits are 3 cm for the small bowel, 6 cm for the large bowel (colon), and 9 cm for the cecum; diameters exceeding these suggest dilation, a key sign of obstruction, with larger measurements increasing the risk of rupture (e.g., >6cm small bowel, >9cm cecum).
It's possible. It depends on where the blockage is and how serious it is. For example, while pooping may be more difficult, you may still have stool with a partial bowel obstruction. Pooping and even passing gas will likely be impossible with a complete bowel obstruction.
In the advent of the faster, easily available computed tomography (CT) scan, more patients are diagnosed by the presence of large fecal matter in the colon and rectum with or without signs of colonic perforation (Fig. 1).
In most mild cases, administration of an enema is sufficient; but in severe cases, one may need to perform manual disimpaction in the operating room. The patient will usually need some type of anesthesia to relax the anal sphincter complex before the fecal impaction can be removed.
Dulcolax® Liquid works naturally with the water in your body to provide fast and gentle relief from occasional constipation, in as little as 30 minutes to 6 hours.
Normal, soft, well-formed stool is the clearest sign that the impaction is clearing. Passing liquid stool (sometimes known as 'overflow') usually means the blockage is still present. Clearing times vary and often require active treatment. Seek medical advice if pain worsens or no bowel movement occurs.
Although bowel movement frequency varies greatly for each person, if more than three days pass without a bowel movement, the contents in the intestines may harden, making it difficult or even painful to pass. Straining during bowel movements or the feeling of incomplete emptying also may be considered constipation.
Experts believe that it's healthy to poop from three times each day up to three times each week. This is called the "three and three rule." If you poop less than three times per week, it could be a sign of constipation, and if you poop more than three times each day, you may have diarrhea.
Abdominal Pain and Cramping
Abdominal pain or cramping is a common symptom. The pain can be mild or very severe. It may stay the same or change. This pain happens because the bowel tries to move stuff past the blockage.
Multidetector CT has a sensitivity and specificity of 95% for the diagnosis of high-grade SBO and is less accurate in partial obstruction (4,6–8). As with radiography, the hallmark is dilated (> 2.5 cm) proximal small bowel with decompressed distal small bowel and colon (Table 2, Fig 7) (15).
Pseudo-obstruction
Common symptoms include: Abdominal cramping and bloating. Leakage of liquid or sudden episodes of watery diarrhea in someone who has chronic (long-term) constipation. Rectal bleeding.
Symptoms of intestinal obstruction are:
Intestinal pseudo-obstruction is a condition characterized by impairment of the muscle contractions that move food through the digestive tract. It can occur at any time of life, and its symptoms range from mild to severe.
Signs and Symptoms of Stomach Cancer
“Red flag” symptoms should alert you to a non-vestibular cause: persistent, worsening vertigo or dysequilibrium; atypical “non-peripheral” vertigo, such as vertical movement; severe headache, especially early in the morning; diplopia; cranial nerve palsies; dysarthria, ataxia, or other cerebellar signs; and ...
The three main red flags for abdominal pain needing urgent care are severe, unrelenting pain (especially with fever/rigidity), vomiting blood or black material, and blood in the stool (bright red or tarry black), all signaling potential serious issues like appendicitis, obstruction, or bleeding that require immediate medical evaluation. Other major flags include inability to pass gas/stool, jaundice, significant weight loss, or pain radiating to the back.