The role of alternative treatments in endo is unclear. Given that conventional treatment has little impact on injuries to autonomic nerves, there may be a case for wider use of alternative treatments. Particularly – in nulliparous women who are having trouble with their bowels – for whatever reason.
Some of the reasons for these bowel problems may stem from early childhood e.g. bottle-feeding, toilet-training, choice of bathroom, etc It was put to me today that some girls will only open their bowels in the privacy of their own home. This was not a reason that I had previously encountered though will undoubtedly contribute to probelms with defaecation and subsequent endo. It also means that counselling will need to be subtle and delicate as they arise out of early childhood experiences. The other question today was “Would (three monthly) hydrocolonotherapy assist in constipation ?” The answer is “I do not know” but it may be tested by seeing if it has any effect on intrinsic bowel function by improving oro-anal transit times. How would you measure transit times ? – the simplest and easiest method is to measure the time it takes for sweet corn to travel from your dinner plate to toilet pan once per week (Ref Alice Roberts, BBC “Don’t Die Young”). Less than 24 hours is good, more than 40 hours needs a better diet (DP Burkitt, 1972).
I am looking forward to seeing the results of these studies.