Symptom: Hard stool

Introduction: Hard stool

Stool hardness, stool dryness, or small stool is often really a form of constipation (see also constipation). Hard stool, dry stool, or constipation can mean many possible medical conditions. Some people distinguish hard stool from constipation by defining constipation as difficulty with bowel motions rather than hardness of stool. However, the two issues are deeply related and the medical definition of constipation usually includes a spectrum of stool hardness. Similarly, soft stool is usually considered part of the spectrum of diarrhea. Seek prompt professional medical advice about such symptoms.

» Review Causes of Hard stool: full list

Causes of Hard stool

• Congenital megacolon - hard stool
• Constipation - small feces
• Irritable bowel syndrome - small feces

See all 3 causes of Hard stool

Hard stool: Multiple Symptom Checker

Listed below are some combinations of symptoms associated with Hard stool, as listed in our database. Visit the Multiple Symptoms Checker, to add and remove symptoms and research your condition.

Multiple Symptom Checker - Other Symptoms

• Hard stool: Multiple Symptom Checker

Multiple Symptom Checker Combinations

• Hard stool and Abdominal swelling (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Abdominal symptoms (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Bowel movements (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Bowel problems (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Constipation (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Digestive symptoms (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Nerve symptoms (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Pain (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Sensations (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Stool symptoms (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Swelling symptoms (3 causes)
• Hard stool and Abdominal distention (2 causes)
• Hard stool and Anal symptoms (2 causes)
• Hard stool and Belching (2 causes)
• Hard stool and Bleeding symptoms (2 causes)
• Hard stool and Bloody stool (2 causes)
• Hard stool and Buttock bleeding (2 causes)
• Hard stool and Flatulence (2 causes)
• Hard stool and Stool color (2 causes)
• Hard stool and Abdominal pain (2 causes)

See full list of 93 Multiple Symptom Checker combinations related to Hard stool

Home Diagnostic Testing and Hard stool

Home medical tests possibly related to Hard stool:

• Colon & Rectal Cancer: Home Testing
• in
• Home Colorectal Cancer Tests
• Home Fecal Occult Bleeding Tests
• out

Causes of General Symptom Types

Research the causes of these more general types of symptom:

• Stool symptoms (766 causes)
• Constipation (370 causes)
• Digestive symptoms (2068 causes)
• Bowel problems (821 causes)
• Bowel movements (711 causes)
• Abdominal symptoms (1371 causes)

Causes of Similar Symptoms to Hard stool

Research the causes of these symptoms that are similar to, or related to, the symptom Hard stool:

• Bowel movements (711 causes)
• Constipation (370 causes)
• Diarrhea (828 causes)
• Stool symptoms (766 causes)
• Stool color changes (182 causes)
• Stool odor (44 causes)

Diagnostic Guides for Hard stool

12 MEDICAL SYMPTOM BOOKS: FULL TEXT ONLINE! Read the full text of published book sections related to Hard stool from the following published medical books for more detailed information about Hard stool. Free access (no registration): read all online diagnostic book sections about Hard stool

Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Misdiagnosis and Hard stool

Chronic digestive conditions often misdiagnosed: When diagnosing chronic symptoms of the digestive tract, there are a variety of conditions that may be...read more »

Intestinal bacteria disorder may be hidden cause: One of the lesser known causes of diarrhea is an imbalance of bacterial in the gut, sometimes called ...read more »

Antibiotics often causes diarrhea: The use of antibiotics are very likely to cause some level of diarrhea in patients. The reason is that antibiotics...read more »

Food poisoning may actually be an infectious disease: Many people who come down with "stomach symptoms" like diarrhea assume that it's "something I ate" (i.e. food poisoning). In fact, it's more...read more »

Mesenteric adenitis misdiagnosed as appendicitis in children: Because appendicitis is one of the more feared conditions for a child with abdominal pain, it can be over...read more »

Celiac disease often fails to be diagnosed cause of chronic digestive symptoms: One of the most common chronic digestive conditions is celiac...read more »

Chronic digestive diseases hard to diagnose: There is an inherent difficulty in diagnosing the various types of chronic digestive diseases. Some of the better known possibilities are peptic ulcer, colon cancer, irritable bowel syndrome, or...read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Hard stool

Diagnostic tests for Hard stool:

Various tests are used in the diagnosis of Hard stool. Some of these are listed below :

• Physical examination
  • Inspection of external anus looking for disease that may cause hrd stools - e.g. anal fissure; or pathology that may be a result of hard stools e.g. hemorrhoids, anal fissure.
  • Igital rectal examination - if there are symptoms of intestinal obstruction and the rectum is empty it may suggest complete intestinal obstruction but if there are some feces in the rectum there may be an incomplete intestinal obstruction; if rectal mass is found it suggests colon cancer.
  • Test perianal sensation and the anal reflex to support neurological cause of bowel infrequency
  • Bdominal examination for tenderness, mass, fecal loading, abdominal distention or irregular liver edge (due to metastases from colon cancer)

See full list of 16 diagnostic tests for Hard stool

Diagnosis Checklist: Questions your doctor may ask (and why!)

During a consultation, your doctor will use various techniques in their assessment of Hard stool. Your doctor may ask several questions when assessing your condition. It is important to remember that your consultation is a two-way process and any extra information you can share with your doctor about your symptoms may help them with their diagnosis. Some of the questions your doctor may ask are listed below:

• When did the hard stools start? - to determine if acute or chronic e.g. if acute may suggest intestinal obstruction or bowel cancer. If hard stools are chronic need to investigate the dietary history, emotional status and toilet habits. Frequency of bowel movements? - to establish severity.
• Consistency of bowel movements? - to establish if true constipation i.e. less than 3 stools per week or stools that are hard to evacuate.
• Dietary history? - e.g. fast food is usually devoid of fiber; weight loss diets may be low in fiber; lack of dietary fiber in diet e.g. fruit, vegetables and wholemeal products.
• Toilet habits over the life span? - e.g. a common cause of chronic constipation or hard stools is the habitual neglect of the impulse to defecate leading to accumulation of large, dry faecal masses which causes constant rectal distension from feces and consequent reduced awareness of rectal fullness.
• Past medical history? - e.g. certain conditions may predispose to constipation or hard stools including depression, hypothyroidism, hypocalcaemia ( low calcium in blood), diabetes, phaeochromocytoma, porphyria, hypokalaemia (low potassium in blood).

See Diagnosis Checklist for Hard stool (17 listings)

Diagnosis Checklist: Associated symptoms your doctor may ask about (and why!)

Sometimes, other symptoms may be present and may help your doctor analyse your condition. The symptoms your doctor may ask about (in association with Hard stool) may include:

• Bloody stool with painful evacuation? - may suggest hemorrhoids or anal fissure. If defecation is painful it may cause you to delay moving your bowels due to fear of the pain which may further perpetuate the problem.
• Bloody stool with painless evacuation? - may suggest colon cancer or diverticulitis.
• Blood and mucous in the stool? - may suggest inflammatory bowel disease.
• Fecal incontinence? - may suggest constipation with overflow of liquid feces. This can occur in children and adults.
• Symptoms of intestinal obstruction? - e.g. abdominal pain, vomiting, loud bowel sounds.

See Diagnosis Checklist for Hard stool (17 listings)

Stories from Users for Hard stool

Real-life user stories relating to Hard stool:

• Extreme Pain in Defecation
• Hard Stools and Chronic Itching at the Anus Please Help
• Hard for me to describe
• mixture of symptoms, tiring of living, hard to explain HELP
• Hard to explain vision
• Hard Time Coping
• this is such a hard Q to answer...

Symptom specific forums: The following patient stories in our interactive forums and message boards relate to Hard stool or relevant symptoms:

• Constitutional (General Wellbeing) (156)
  • Sore Scalp/hair follicles
  • Fat loss in entire body
  • Dont know how much more I can take..
  • I'm Lost.
  • My wife does not sweat I'm worried
  • More user stories
• Gastrointestinal (Food - from entry to exit) (452)
  • Bloating/Distention/Intestinal Gas
  • Intense Abdominal Pain
  • Help Please! Extreme Abdominal Pain/Gas/Bowel Symptoms ++
  • Feels like a baby kicking-not pregnant
  • 7 year old with severe heartburn/stomach aches
  • More user stories
• Neurological (Nerves) (357)
  • Could this be MS?
  • Numbness and tingling all over
  • Tingling/numbness in arms/hands/legs/face/head [more symptoms]
  • Eye twitch
  • Essential tremor
  • More user stories

Videos for Hard stool

Patient Surveys for Hard stool

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Organs affected by Hard stool:

The list of organs typically affected by Hard stool may include, but is not limited to:

• Large bowel
• Small Bowel
• Stomach

Detailed list of causes of Hard stool

The list below shows some of the causes of Hard stool mentioned in various sources:

• Congenital megacolon - hard stool
• Constipation - small feces
• Irritable bowel syndrome - small feces

See full list of 3 causes of Hard stool

How Common are these Causes of Hard stool?

This information refers to the general prevalence and incidence of these diseases, not to how likely they are to be the actual cause of Hard stool. Of the 3 causes of Hard stool that we have listed, we have the following prevalence/incidence information:

• 0 causes are "very common" diseases
• 2 causes are "common" diseases
• 0 causes are "uncommon" diseases
• 0 causes are "rare" diseases
• 0 causes are "very rare" diseases
• 3 causes have no prevalence information.

See the analysis of the prevalence of 3 causes of Hard stool

Conditions listing symptoms: Hard stool:

The following list of conditions have 'Hard stool' or similar listed as a symptom in our database. This computer-generated list may be inaccurate or incomplete. Always seek prompt professional medical advice about the cause of any symptom.

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Causes of Hard stool Based on Risk Factors

This information shows analysis of the list of causes of Hard stool based on whether certain risk factors apply to the patient: