Yes, and it was important

Improbable research usually links to papers about absurd reseach, but today's link is about the morbidity caused by diarrhea in soldiers serving in Iraq: probably because two of the four authors had absurd names. (Riddle and Tribble).

ah but it is a major problem... and they also link to another paper about the problem of constipation.

Well, some people attribute Napoleon's loss at Waterloo to his hemorrhoids (a complication of constipation).
or maybe not:

As detailed in Phil Mason’s book “Napoleon’s Hemorrhoids: And Other Small Events That Changed History,” some scholars believe the French military leader suffered a painful bout of hemorrhoids on the morning of the Battle of Waterloo that prevented him from riding his horse to survey the battlefield as was his custom and could have contributed to his defeat. However, Waterloo expert Alasdair White told the New York Times that the story is “an absolute myth” concocted by Napoleon boosters because they “cannot believe that the great man lost, so there must have been something wrong with him.”