[Analysis of anorectal manometry data in central and peripheral neurological deseases: Review of the literature]

INTRODUCTION: Peripheral or central neurological deseases are providers of anorectal disorders of variable clinical expression (constipation, dyschezia, faecal incontinence (FI)…). Anorectal manometry (ARM) participates in their exploration to determine the underlying mechanisms, guide and optimize treatments. The objective of this work was to determine if there is a pattern of ARM data in neurological populations. MATERIALS ET METHODS: Literature review from PubMed, Cochrane and Google scholar databases, using the following keywords: parkinsonian disorders; parkinson's disease; multiple slcerosis; neurolog*; spinal cord injury; spina bifida occulta; stroke; pudendal; endometriosis; peripheral nervous system diseases. 196 articles were isolated and finally 45 retained after reading the title and the abstract. RESULTS: Data comparison was difficult due to the heterogeneity of techniques and thresholds used. In central lesions, resting and squeeze anal pressures were often altered. The presence of FI or constipation, the sex and the lesion level were factors influencing these data (low if complete injury, women or EDSS>5.5). In case of peripheral lesion, it is the anal tone and the contraction that varied the symptomatology. The sensory thresholds were variable regardless of the impairment. CONCLUSION: This review did not identify a data pattern of ARM in central and peripheral neurological deseases. Gradual standardization of techniques and protocols will allow better comparison of data.