Many diseases that affect the body tissues, such as scleroderma or lupus, and certain neurological or muscular diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and stroke, can be responsible for constipation. Loss of Body Salts. The loss of body salts through the kidneys or through vomiting or diarrhea is anothercause of constipation. Scarring, inflammation around diverticula, tumors, and cancer can produce mechanical compression of the intestine and result in constipation. Injuries to the spinal cord and tumors pressing on the spinal cord can produce constipation by affecting the nerves that lead to the intestine.
Many medications can cause constipation.
Constipation is common in children and may be related to any of the causes noted in the previous section. In a small number of children, constipation may be the result of physical problems. Children with such defects as the absence of normal nerve endings in portions of the bowel, abnormalities of the spinal cord, thyroid deficiency, mental retardation, and certain other inherited metabolic disorders often suffer symptoms of constipation. Constipation in children, however, usually is due to poor bowel habits. Studies show that many children who suffer from constipation when they are older have a history of passing stools that are firmer than average in their early weeks of life.