Table 2.
Pooled prevalence of functional constipation according to the geographic regions in China.
| Geographic regions | Province | Number of studies | Number of participants | Pooled prevalence (95% confidence interval) | I2 | p-value for χ2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North China | Beijing Municipality | 4 | 22,458 | 8.6% (3.5–19.6) | 100% | <0.01 |
| Hebei Province | 4 | 5,751 | 22.0% (10.8–39.6) | 99% | <0.01 | |
| Northeast China | Jilin Province | 1 | 243 | 38.7% (32.8–45.0) | NA | NA |
| Northwest China | Shaanxi Province | 2 | 16,798 | 1.4% (0.1–11.9) | 95% | <0.01 |
| Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region | 2 | 794 | 29.0% (22.6–36.3) | 95% | <0.01 | |
| Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region | 1 | 541 | 38.8% (34.8–43.0) | NA | NA | |
| East China | Shanghai Province | 6 | 30,477 | 5.6% (3.9–8.0) | 97% | <0.01 |
| Zhejiang Province | 4 | 6,690 | 11.0% (5.1–21.8) | 99% | <0.01 | |
| Anhui Province | 2 | 6,589 | 4.0% (3.5–4.5) | 2% | 0.31 | |
| Jiangsu Province | 1 | 1,999 | 3.9% (3.1–4.8) | NA | NA | |
| South Central China | Guangdong Province | 4 | 24,248 | 5.5% (3.7–8.1) | 97% | <0.01 |
| Henan Province | 2 | 8,816 | 1.1% (0.2–6.1) | 98% | <0.01 | |
| Hubei Province | 1 | 16,078 | 5.9% (5.5–6.3) | NA | NA | |
| Southwest China | Chongqing Municipality | 1 | 1,492 | 3.2% (2.4–4.2) | NA | NA |
| Sichuan Province | 1 | 4,967 | 7.4% (6.7–8.1) | NA | NA | |
| Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan regions of China | Taiwan | 2 | 6,293 | 6.3% (4.1–9.5) | 97% | <0.01 |
| Hong Kong | 1 | 3,282 | 14.0% (12.8–15.2) | NA | NA |
NA, not applicable, too few studies to assess heterogeneity.