Constipation

Five year old Kelsey, like 1 in 12 children under ten, is suffering from a poo problem. Kelsey holds in her poo, as she finds it painful to go to the toilet, it can be as long as 7-10 days between poos. Dr Christian wants to determine whether Kelsey is suffering from constipation or toilet phobia, and has a feel of her stomach to check that her organs and bowels are ok and that there isn’t a build up of hard poo. He confirms that it is a psychological problem, rather than physical, and refers Kelsey to child constipation specialist Dr Anthony Cohn. Dr Antony tries to change Kelsey’s perception of poo through a friendly cartoon character Mr Poo and by prescribing a high fibre diet and laxatives. After trying out the treatment, mum Claire reports positive results to Dr Christian, Kelsey is going to the toilet regularly now, thanks to mums persistent use of the laxative.