Frequency of symptoms perceived to be important for a constipation diagnosis
| General population | GI specialists | GPs | P value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Without constipation | With constipation | ||||
| Rome IV symptoms | |||||
| Infrequent bowel movements | 28% | 26% | 65% | 41% | < 0.001 |
| Hard stool | 26% | 32% | 57% | 66% | < 0.001 |
| Straining | 43% | 40% | 53% | 61% | < 0.001 |
| Sense of incomplete evacuation | 15% | 24% | 21% | 13% | < 0.001 |
| Manual disimpaction | 14% | 15% | 32% | 34% | < 0.001 |
| Non-Rome IV symptoms | |||||
| Long time on toilet without stool | 42% | 29% | 33% | 23% | < 0.001 |
| Laxative use | 37% | 33% | 56% | 40% | < 0.001 |