6 yr old son has mulitiple BM"s in pants...

[CatieD]

My 6yr old son has started pooping in his underware, and doesn't even notice. He was sent home from school today, and after cleaning up, and changing clothes, he did it again. When I smelled him getting in the car, I asked, he said "No". Once I checked him, he had indeed pooped his pants. Swears he didn't know and couldn't feel it. (I dont know how...?!) I've even found that he's pooped his pants in his sleep and not changing when he wakes up..just walking around like that, as if it's "normal" or "okay". This isn't loose stools, these are normal solid stools that are being smushed in his pants. He has no problem going on the toilet....and still frequents the toilet multiple times each day, with normal bowels, so I don't think he is impacted. I am becoming frustrated and broke from the amount of under garments I'm having to replace. I don't understand, and I don't think he does either. He doesn't know why he does it, or that it's even happened.

PLEASE!!! Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I've asked many that I work with at our practice, and none of the other nurses' have heard such a thing....especially with his age being up there out of the potty training era.

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

This warrants evaluation by his pediatrician. If he is having multiple bowel movements each day he may have impacted bowels or a lesser degree of constipation. Parents often are surprised when constipation is the culprit because it seems contradictory. But impacted or nearly impacted bowels do result in such a pattern of bowel movements. In any case, arrange the pediatrics evaluation.

[CatieD]

Hey HAD an anal fissure as an infant, and it was corrected with surgery at 18 mo. old. I check every so often to ensure that it is not reopened or a new one has not developed.

[MLWTR]

It's possible that he has an anal fissure. If so, it is perfectly possible that he feels nothing at all when the stool passes through the fissure. There is no way he could prevent it from happening. He needs a careful visual exam from his pediatrician to see if this is the problem.