Support Care Cancer DOI 10.1007/s00520-015-2831-5

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Constipation in specialized palliative care: factors related to constipation when applying different definitions E. Erichsén 1,2,3

&

A. Milberg 1,2,3 & T. Jaarsma 1 & M. Friedrichsen 1,3

Received: 18 December 2014 / Accepted: 22 June 2015 # Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2015

Abstract Context For patients in palliative care, constipation is primarily a result of opioid treatment. Impacts from other factors related to constipation in palliative care are rarely studied. Objectives The aim was to identify factors related to constipation in patients in palliative care, and then to compare these factors between patients with different types of constipation and patients without constipation. Methods Cross-sectional data on constipation was collected with a 26-item questionnaire from 485 patients in 38 specialist palliative care units in Sweden. Three different constipation groups were used; MC ONLY, PC ONLY, and MC & PC. Logistic regression analyses were used to calculate odds ratios. Results Patients with