Purpose of review

No gold standard exists for managing neurogenic bowel dysfunction, specifically in individuals with spina bifida. Since the International Children's Continence Society published its consensus document on neurogenic bowel treatment in 2012, an increased focus on why we must manage bowels and how to improve our management has occurred. This review provides updated information for clinicians.

Recent findings

A surge in research, mostly retrospective, has been conducted on the success and satisfaction of three types of management for neurogenic bowel. All three management techniques have relatively high success rates for fecal continence and satisfaction rates. Selection of which treatment to carry out still is debated among clinicians. Transanal irrigation is a safe and effective management option for neurogenic bowel that does not require surgery. Antegrade enemas can be carried out via cecostomy tube or Malone antegrade continence enema with similar fecal continence outcomes.