CLINICAL SPECTRUM OF FUNCTIONAL CONSTIPATION AND BOWEL-HABIT PATTERNS OF SCHOOLCHILDREN RECRUITED FROM TWO ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS AND A SPECIALIZED OUTPATIENT CLINIC.

As expected, the frequency of more severe clinical manifestations was higher in children seen at specialized clinics. Only a small proportion of the children identified with functional constipation at primary schools had undergone any form of treatment in the previous 2 months. More than half of the children without functional constipation in elementary schools reported one of the Rome IV clinical manifestations. Finally, functional constipation has a broad clinical spectrum and also requires attention for the prevention and the management of its early clinical manifestations.