대한대장항문학회

<b>Purpose:</b> Generally, the constipation is a medical disease, but recently, there are many reports showing the good results after correction of rectocele in constipated patients. The authors try to show the effect of surgery in rectocele<br>cases<br>and<br>also analyse the relationship between the anatomical distortion and clinical symptoms by using anorectal physiologic study before and after operation.<br><br><b>Methods:</b> 31 cases of rectocele are surgically corrected from June 1998 to August 2001. 31 cases of them could be followed up and with them, pre- and post-operative anal ultrasonography, anorectal manommetry and defecography were tried.<br>Personal<br>interview was also done to each patient.<br><br><b>Results:</b> After trasanal rectocele repair, the rectocele size decreased and clinical symptoms improved remarkably. In defecography, anorectal angle (pre-op; 105.9±6.0° vs. post- op; 109.5±3.7°) and perineal descent (1.6±0.7 ㎝ vs.<br>2.4±1.2<br>㎝) increase in pushing state after operation. In anorectal manometry, mean resting anal pressure (29.2±3.4 ㎜Hg vs. 17.9±4.6 ㎜Hg) and maximal squeeze pressure (84.5±20.8 ㎜Hg vs. 47.6±12.1 ㎜Hg) decreased and rectal sensation improved after<br>operation.<br><br><b>Conclusions:</b> Current results suggest that the surgical correction aims not only the decrement of the rectocele size but changing the vector power on pushing more physiologically and also improving the rectal sensibility.<br>