Linaclotide for paediatric functional constipation

In The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Carlo Di Lorenzo and colleagues1 report, for the first time, the efficacy and safety of linaclotide in a multicentre, double-blind, randomised controlled trial that included 328 children with functional constipation. Linaclotide is an agonist of guanylate cyclase C, binds to the receptors located on the luminal surface of the intestinal epithelium, and acts by increasing cyclic GMP in the cells, thus stimulating the secretion of chloride, bicarbonate, and fluid in the intestinal lumen.