PATIENT PRESENTATION MARKER

Straining

What this marker measures

The degree to which the patient reported straining to pass a bowel motion in the last 3 months.

Health categories/Interpretations informed by this marker

‍
Clinical features
‍
‍● Lower GI symptoms: straining is a commonly-reported lower gastrointestinal symptom that can affect quality of life.
^‍

Interpreting the result

PRESENT

Questionnaire responses indicate straining or using effort to pass a bowel motion more than 25% of the time.

PARTIALLY PRESENT

Questionnaire responses indicate straining or using effort to pass a bowel motion 25% of the time or less.

NOT PRESENT

Questionnaire responses indicate not straining or using effort to pass a bowel motion in the past 3 months.

Patient management insights

DIETARY STRATEGIES

Add kiwifruit: 2 green or 3 gold kiwifruit per day may reduce straining in constipation and IBS-C.^1–3
GRADE D

Tips for patients discussion

"Your questionnaire responses show that you often need to strain to pass a bowel motion. This is common and can affect how you feel day to day. Eating two green kiwifruit a day is a simple option we can try, and we'll look at your other results to see what else might help."

Source references for all clinical associations, interpretation definitions, and patient management insights on this card.

1. Gearry, R. et al. Consumption of 2 green kiwifruits daily improves constipation and abdominal comfort—results of an international multicenter randomized controlled trial. Am J Gastroenterol 118, 1058–1068 (2023).
2. Eady, S. L. et al. The effect of ‘Zesy002’ kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis var. chinensis) on gut health function: a randomised cross-over clinical trial. J Nutr Sci 8, e18 (2019).
3. Chey, S. W., Chey, W. D., Jackson, K. & Eswaran, S. Exploratory comparative effectiveness trial of green kiwifruit, psyllium, or prunes in US patients with chronic constipation. Am J Gastroenterol 116, 1304–1312 (2021).