Abstract
A study was conducted to investigate postoperative defecative dysfunction in rectal cancer patients following sphincter-saving resections. The study covered 58 patients with rectal cancer who had undergone sphincter-saving resection more than 4 months previously.
Data collection consisted of an：interview with a questionnaire and a survey of the medical records.
Characteristic symptoms of postoperative defecative dysfunctions were as follows：a small volume of stool at each defecation,and periodic frequent bowel movement,frequent bowel movement occurring within a short period,a thin stool,perianal pain,a feeling of remaining stool,nocturnal defecation,soiling,uncontrollable defecation and breaking wind,the inability to discriminate between stool and wind and the desire to defecate,but failure to do so.
The relationships among the various symptoms of defecative dysfunction were examined,and a symptom framework was constructed by factor analysis. As a result,a “Defecative Dysfunction Assessment Scale”（DDAS） was developed. Its concurrent validity was clarified using the Mie University Scale,and it was determined that the DDAS will be a valuable tool in future defecative dysfunction assessment.
