Health Update: Wired up

ELECTRODES attached to the anus can cure severe constipation, particularly in women, and help to eliminate the need for laxatives or surgery, according to Dr Michael Kamm, a consultant physician at St Mark's Hospital, London. He says the electrodes can help sufferers to learn how to improve poor pelvic and anal muscle function. The electrodes are linked to a visual display unit so that patients can see the electrical activity generated when their muscles contract and relax, and learn to co-ordinate these properly, a report in Mims says.