Questionnaire for family and carers on managing constipation in children and young people

Constipation is very common in children, it affects 1 in 3 children, even babies.  How can you tell if a child is constipated?

• Children should pass soft poo every day, or at least every other day.
• Pooing fewer than 4 times a week also means poo is in a traffic jam.
• Pooing more than 3 times a day can be a sign that the bowel is full and is leaking out a bit at a time.
• Soiling. It might be hard bits, soft stuff or even liquid bypassing the traffic jam, called overflow. 
• Big poos, or lots of poo all at once
• Tummy ache or pain when they poo
• Distended/swollen tummy
• Really smelly poo/wind, or bad breath
• They might not feel like eating, or even feel sick

The full bowel might press on the bladder and cause frequent small wees/urgency/day or night-time wetting/urinary tract infections (UTIs).

We would really like you to complete this short survey to help us understand your experiences so we can improve services. Please note when we use 'child' in the questions below we are referring to a child or young person up to the age of 18.