Blood in the stool, bleeding from the rectum - Causes, symptoms and treatment. MF.

Symptoms associated with rectal bleeding:

• Blood in the chair
• Bloody stool
• Blood stool

Blood in the stool can be bright red, burgundy, black and clearly visible, or hidden( not visible to the naked eye).Causes of blood in the stool are different, ranging from innocuous ones, for example irritation of the gastrointestinal tract, to serious diseases such as hemorrhoids, cancer.

Bleeding from the rectum( bloody stools) refers to bright red blood from the anus, often mingling with feces and / or blood clots. Rectal bleeding from the colon, rectum and anus is more common.

The color of blood during rectal bleeding often depends on the site of bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract. As a rule, the closer the source of bleeding to the anus, the brighter the blood. Thus, bleeding from the anus, rectum and sigmoid colon is usually bright red, and bleeding from the rectum and transverse( transverse and large intestine a few meters from the anus), usually dark red or maroon.

In some cases, bleeding from the anus can be black in color and unpleasant to smell. Black, smelly and resinous feces is called melena. Melena occurs when the blood is in the colon long enough and enough to multiply bacteria to break it down into chemicals( hematin) that are black. Thus, Melena usually means bleeding from the upper parts of the gastrointestinal tract( eg, bleeding from a stomach or duodenal ulcer or from the small intestine).

Sometimes melena can be the result of a bleeding from the right side of the large intestine. On the other hand, blood from the sigmoid colon and rectum usually does not stay in the colon long enough for bacteria to make the feces black. Rarely, massive bleeding from the right colon, from the small intestine, or from a stomach or duodenal ulcer, can lead to a rapid transfer of blood through the gastrointestinal tract and as a result - a bright red rectal bleeding. In such situations, blood moves so fast that there is not enough time for bacteria to turn the blood into black.

Sometimes, bleeding from the gastrointestinal tract may be too slow to look like rectal bleeding or melena. This is a hidden bleeding( not visible to the naked eye).Blood in the stool is detected only by tests( fecal testing for latent blood) in the laboratory.

Bleeding is often associated with anemia - loss of iron along with blood( iron deficiency anemia).

Blood veins in a normally formed or liquid stool .The causes can be: tumors( malignant and benign) of the gastrointestinal tract, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, intestinal diverticula, etc.

Unchanged scarlet blood, not mixed with stool. Most often indicates bleeding from the hemorrhoids of the rectum or cracks in the anus. Bright red blood in the feces is a characteristic feature for hemorrhoids. Most often it is about the allocation of scarlet blood without clots, in rare cases, the appearance of dark blood with clots. When hemorrhoids bleed in the vast majority occurs during or immediately after defecation, less often between defecation.

Bleeding from the anus is also characteristic of the anal fissure, but with a small amount of blood, is released during or immediately after defecation.

Isolation of scarlet blood also occurs with rectal cancer, so when bleeding occurs, you need to see a doctor for a finger examination, as well as a sigmoidoscopy or a colonoscopy.

The black liquid stool indicates a massive bleeding from any part of the gastrointestinal tract. The black color of the stool is due to a change in blood under the action of hydrochloric acid in the stomach. The cause of such massive bleeding may be ulcers or erosions of the stomach or duodenum, varicose veins of the esophagus( manifestation of cirrhosis of the liver), certain medications and poisonous substances. In addition, bleeding can be caused by malignant neoplasms of the gastrointestinal tract.

Diseases in which there may be rectal bleeding

• anal fissure
• anal fissure
• polyps
• Crohn's disease
• diverticulitis
• hemorrhoids
• peptic ulcer
• stomach cancer

Possible causes of bleeding from the rectum

• varicose veins of the esophagus

appearance of blood in the stoolis always a formidable symptom requiring the participation of a physician. A slight, one-time occurrence of scarlet blood that is not mixed with a stool during constipation can be caused by overstretch and rupture of the anus by too hard-boiled masses and does not require medical intervention.

Infectious causes of the appearance of blood in the stool:

Dysentery( shigellosis) is a disease caused by bacteria of the genus Shigella. Bacteria most often affect the lower part of the colon, causing damage to the mucosa, which is manifested by a frequent liquid stool( 10-30 times a day) with an admixture of blood, a lot of mucus, pus. Characteristic also expressed cramping pains in the abdomen, false painful urges for defecation - tenesmus;In addition, there is severe intoxication - fever, chills, weakness, pain in the muscles and joints.

Amoebiasis is a protozoal infection( which means that the causative agent is the simplest - amoeba).Amoeba also affects the thick part of the intestines, which causes frequent, loose stools in small portions with an admixture of blood, mucus and pus. Amebiasis in the absence of adequate treatment is prone to chronic course, which occurs as a result of the formation of chronic ulcers of the intestine.

Balantidiasis is an infection caused also by the simplest - balantidia. Symptoms of the disease are similar to manifestations of amebiasis. Often, the disease is asymptomatic or in mild form, but sometimes there is a long-standing diarrhea with an admixture of blood.

To which doctor to apply for the appearance of blood in the chair

With the systematic appearance of blood in the stool, consultation of a doctor - proctologist, coloproctology - is necessary.