Constipation: Prevalence and Associated Factors in Adults Living in Londrina, Southern Brazil

The aims of this study were to estimate the prevalence of constipation and identify associated factors among adults living in an urban area in Londrina, Brazil. This was a secondary analysis of an epidemiological, population-based study on bowel habit performed in 2008 with 2,162 individuals selected through cluster sampling. Interviews were administered using a sociodemographic questionnaire and the adapted and validated Brazilian version of the "Bowel Function in the Community" tool. Variables from the original database were used to determine the prevalence of constipation (according to the Rome Criteria III) and associated factors. The chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression were used for data analysis. The overall prevalence of constipation (14.6%; n = 315) was higher among women than among men (21.9% vs. 5.3%), increased with age among men, and was inversely related to family income. Overall, female gender, low socioeconomic status, history of anal fi ssure, anorectal surgery, stroke, nervous system disease, fi stulae, and hemorrhoids were factors signifi cantly associated with constipation. The variables low social economic status, stroke, anal fi ssure history, and anorectal surgery were statistically signifi cant in all three tested statistical models.