Constipation in 2 year old - hospital appointment

[Lou1603]

My son has struggled with constipation for over a year. Been back and forth the doctors. He's been on movicol and lactulose but they didn't seem to do much. I finally begged the doctor to refer him to our children's hospital.

We have an appointment tomorrow. Just wondering has anyone else's little one had a hospital appointment about constipation? What did they ask/do at the appointment?

Just any advice would be appreciated

Thanks x

Google the "poo nurses" and watch the video. That will give you lots of information. Also make sure you study the ERIC website.

They should arrange a plain abdominal xray as this is the only way to diagnose / exclude impaction.

How much movicol has he been on? It's likely the first thing they will do is put him on a disimpaction regime, using increasing amounts of movicol up to 10 sachets a day until he is just passing water, then slowly reduced down to an amount to keep him passing a soft poo every day. It can take months to correct constipation so be prepared for a long haul. I second having a look at the ERIC website for lots of good information, including diet and good positions for him to be in while he's pooing.

At the appointment its likely they'll listen to the history and have a good feel of his tummy to see if they can feel any poo before they make a plan. Depending on how it feels and his history, they might refer him for an ultrasound or xray of his tummy (xrays tend to be less favoured these days) but they should explain everything they're doing and why to you and give you a change to ask questions. Hope it goes well.