Fecal disimpaction may be necessary during the management of constipated children in a hospital setting.

A new study published in Gastroenterology Nursing evaluated the efficiency of two disimpaction therapies – nasogastric polyethylene glycol-electrolyte solution and oral magnesium citrate.

This was a retrospective chart review of 103 children (in the age-range of 1-18 years) which investigated the duration from the beginning of cleanout procedure until abdominal radiograph verification of successful stool evacuation. Among the children enrolled, 45% received nasogastric polyethylene glycol-electrolyte and 55% were given oral magnesium citrate.

It was observed that children who received nasogastric polyethylene glycol-electrolyte required 2.5 enemas on an average, while those receiving magnesium citrate required a mean of 3 enemas. On the other hand, the average time for a nasogastric polyethylene glycol-electrolyte cleanout was 5 hours 15 minutes compared to 5 hours 30 minutes for magnesium citrate cleanout. However, 12% children were unable to drink the entire magnesium citrate dose.

From the results, it was concluded that magnesium citrate can be difficult to drink, whereas polyethylene glycol-electrolyte is better tolerated among children.