Clinical parameters, success percentages, and dosage of laxative (Student’s t test) in the polyethylene glycol 3350 (PEG) and lactulose groups
| Defecation frequency/week | PEG 3350 | Lactulose | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intake | 8 weeks | p Value | Intake | 8 weeks | p Value | |
| FU, follow up; 95% CI, 95% confidence interval. | ||||||
| The lactulose group experienced a significant increase in success after changing to PEG at the end of the intervention period (29%) compared with follow up at 26 weeks (47%) (p = 0.05). | ||||||
| All age groups | 2.59 (3.34) | 7.12 (5.14) | <0.01 | 2.75 (3.08) | 6.43 (5.18) | <0.01 |
| <6 y | 1.39 (1.09) | 7.18 (4.70) | <0.01 | 1.76 (1.26) | 5.22 (3.92) | <0.01 |
| ⩾6 y | 3.69 (4.25) | 7.08 (5.57) | <0.01 | 3.83 (4.04) | 7.70 (6.07) | 0.01 |
| Encopresis frequency/week | Intake | 8 weeks | Intake | 8 weeks | ||
| All age groups | 9.70 (14.98) | 3.11 (5.41) | <0.01 | 7.73 (11.17) | 2.84 (3.59) | <0.01 |
| <6 y | 14.25 (19.69) | 3.54 (5.61) | 0.01 | 7.54 (14.02) | 3.56 (4.51) | 0.172 |
| ⩾6 y | 5.52 (6.83) | 2.72 (5.34) | 0.07 | 7.93 (7.18) | 2.08 (2.14) | 0.01 |
| Success percentages (95% CI) | ||||||
| At 8 weeks | 56% (39–70) | 29% (16–44) | 0.02 | |||
| FU 4 weeks | 53% (36–68) | 36% (21–53) | 0.18 | |||
| FU 8 weeks | 54% (37–71) | 41% (26–58) | 0.36 | |||
| FU 26 weeks | 63% (46–76) | 47% (32–62) | 0.13 | |||
| Medication (sachet/day) | ||||||
| At 8 weeks | 1.99 (0.3) | 2.4 (0.4) | 0.03 | |||