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Fecal incontinence - bowel incontinence

Fecal incontinence is the inability to control your bowels, it is the inability to control your bowel movements, causing stool (feces) to leak unexpectedly from your rectum. Fecal incontinence can range from an occasional leakage of stool while passing gas to a complete loss of bowel control.

Common causes of fecal incontinence include constipation, diarrhea, and muscle or nerve damage. The condition may be due to a weakened anal sphincter associated with aging. Fecal incontinence can also occur as a result of childbirth. Injury to the nerves and muscles of the rectum and anus while giving birth can cause a woman to lose control of her bowel movements.

• constipation
• Diarrhea
• Gas and gas pains

Babies, of course, are incontinent until toilet-trained. Although fecal incontinence affects people of all ages, this condition is more common in women and in older adults of both sexes.

Fecal incontinence may be a source of embarrassment. It may cause you to stay at home and withdraw from social events. But don't shy away from talking to your doctor about it. Many treatments - some of which are very simple - are available that can improve, if not correct, incontinence.

Signs and symptoms

Most of us take for granted that we can control our bowels. We generally don't have "accidents" unless we have a short-lived bout of diarrhea. But that's not the case for people with recurring, or chronic, fecal incontinence. They can't control the passage of gas or stools, which may be liquid or solid, from their bowels. And they often don't make it to the toilet in time to avoid an accident.

For some people including children, fecal incontinence is a relatively minor problem, limited to occasional soiling of their underwear. For others, the condition can be devastating due to a complete lack of bowel control.

Fecal incontinence may be accompanied by other bowel troubles, such as:

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