This systematic review investigated the effectiveness of biofeedback as additional treatment for functional constipation in children. Medline, Embase, and PsycINFO were searched for systematic reviews and randomized trials that compared biofeedback to standard therapy, sham-therapy, or no therapy in children (aged 0 to 18 years) with functional constipation. Definition of constipation was an inclusion criterion. Two high-quality systematic reviews were found. The first review included five studies involving children with constipation and faecal incontinence. Pooling of data was impossible due to heterogeneity. Four of the five studies showed no statistically significant differences in outcomes. The second review included nine studies with as common outcome the number of children that were cured or showed improvement. After data pooling, no significant difference between biofeedback plus conventional treatment (laxatives, dietary advice, and toilet training) and conventional treatment alone was seen after 12 months (OR 1.13; 95% CI 0.77 to 1.66) and 18 months (OR 1.42; 95% CI 0.79 to 2.53). In contrast with the current adult literature, there is insufficient evidence that biofeedback training has added benefit in the management of functional constipation in children.

There are no links to full text for this record.