(2000). Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, 48:1327-1354 Encopresis and Anal Masturbation Roy N. Aruffo , Segundo Ibarra and Karen R. Strupp Current pediatric and psychiatric studies on encopresis and its treatment are heavily influenced by mechanical, physiological, and behavioral considerations. Although psychodynamic treatment has generally been considered to be of little benefit, and its findings suspect, the authors suggest that a psychodynamic approach adds substantially to the understanding of some cases of encopresis; that the anal sensations and anal erotic feelings reported by a number of encopretic children are intense, and that the encopretic symptom, soiling, in these children is the result of a conscious form of anal masturbation in which the fecal mass is used for stimulation; and that any study of encopresis is incomplete that does not include what encopretic children, engaged in a sound therapeutic relationship, know and say about their soiling. The authors further suggest that physical treatments of those children whose encopresis is psychologically driven may be contraindicted. The presence of a large stool does not in itself substantiate a physical illness. Further research is needed to elucidate the prevalence of anal masturbation in encopretic children. [This is a summary or excerpt from the full text of the book or article. The full text of the document is available to subscribers.] |
