A new study published in BMJ Pediatrics Open examined comorbidity between childhood constipation and soiling, as well as early childhood risk factors for these conditions. This study recruited 8,435 participants from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children with maternally reported measures of constipation (six time points between 4 and 10 years) and soiling (five time points between 4 and 9 years). Here, latent class analysis was utilized to extract longitudinal patterns of constipation and soiling. Differential associations of latent classes with maternally reported risk factors in early childhood - stool consistency, breast feeding, socioeconomic background, gestation, birth weight, developmental level and age at initiation of toilet training were analyzed. Overall, four latent classes were extracted: normative - 74.5%, very low probability of constipation or soiling; constipation alone - 13.2%; soiling alone - 7.5%; and constipation with soiling - 4.8%. The results suggested that hard stools at 2½ years were associated with increased odds of constipation alone. In these children, a developmental delay at 18 months was associated soiling alone and constipation with soiling, but not with constipation alone. Meanwhile, limited evidence of associations of these conditions with socioeconomic background and no evidence of associations with age at initiation of toilet training, breast feeding, gestational age or birth weight were found. Hence, it was inferred that constipation alone was the most prevalent pattern in the study cohort. It was stated that treatment for hard stools in early childhood is needed to prevent chronic constipation at school age.