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2023 Author: Alfred Shackley | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-21 13:14
The presence of liquid bloody discharge during bowel movements is a dangerous symptom that cannot be ignored. A stool with blood warns of many diseases and pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, so if such a symptom appears, you should immediately consult a doctor.
Associated symptoms
Loose stools with blood can be the result of infections and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Each problem is accompanied by individual symptoms:
- Diseases of the rectum, anal area. Problems of this nature are accompanied by pain during bowel movements, constipation. After stool, scarlet blood appears on toilet paper, bright red bruises or streaks in the feces are found.
- Infections. The most dangerous ailment, accompanied by blood in the liquid feces, is dysentery. It is characterized by an increase in temperature, false, painful urge to use the toilet, uncomfortable sensations in the anus.
- Other diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. With many problems with these organs, the patient's feces are black, which indicates hidden bleeding.
Also a common symptom of gastrointestinal diseases is pain in the abdomen and anus.
Possible reasons
Blood in the stool is not always in the form of leaks. The problem can manifest itself in many ways, from red blood clots to black stools.
Common causes of bloody stool in an adult:
- Haemorrhoids. Pathological inflammation of the veins of the anus, characterized by frequent bleeding in loose stools. Symptoms appear with intense physical exertion or a sedentary lifestyle. With a long course of the disease, hemorrhoidal nodules form in the rectum.
- Ulcerative colitis. Chronic inflammation of the rectum. The disease is immune in nature, often hereditary. The course of ulcerative colitis is accompanied by ulcers of the colon, which lead to the formation of tumors.
- Crohn's disease. Chronic inflammatory bowel disease affecting different parts of the gastrointestinal tract. Throughout the patient's intestines, foci of inflammation - granulomas - appear. This leads to obstruction and fistula formation. Sometimes there are lesions of the liver, musculoskeletal system, skin.
- Anal fissures. Mechanical damage to the anus can occur with constipation or external exposure (with anal sex or masturbation). Such causes of loose stools with blood are less dangerous to health, however, only a doctor will prescribe the correct treatment.
- Infectious diseases. There are viral, parasitic and bacterial infections. Most of them are accompanied by fever, pain in the abdomen and anus. There is also a group of sexually transmitted infections (syphilis, herpes), their symptoms are similar to those listed above.
Upper bowel bleeding may not be visible during bowel movements, but it gives the stool a black color.
This is a symptom of the following diseases:
- stomach ulcer;
- tumors of the gastrointestinal tract;
- intestinal tuberculosis;
- cancer.
Sometimes, bleeding from the nasopharynx and oral cavity can be the cause of bloody stool in an adult, for example, with stomatitis and periodontal disease. The patient simply swallows blood, and in the process of digestion, the feces turn dark due to hemoglobin.
Treatment and diagnostics
Loose stools with blood in an adult can talk about many diseases, each of which needs an individual treatment plan. Self-administration of any medications can only aggravate the condition. If traces of blood are found in liquid feces, you should consult a specialist.
Diagnosis of such diseases is divided into several stages:
- The first is the analysis of feces for occult blood, it allows you to detect traces of hemoglobin in feces. Before the analysis, the patient is prescribed a five-day diet that excludes meat and other foods containing hemoglobin.
- One of the main methods of examining the gastrointestinal tract is colonoscopy. It detects most of the pathologies of the large intestine.
- If you suspect bleeding from the anus or diseases of the intestinal vascular system, the patient is prescribed angiography. This is an x-ray study using contrast, which studies vascular pathology.
After the diagnosis, the doctor prescribes treatment for the patient. Most often it involves medication and diet.
Most often, blood from the anus after stool appears due to hemorrhoids. The patient may require surgery. Operations are carried out at the fourth stage of the disease.
In addition to traditional surgery, the removal of hemorrhoids is carried out using a laser and electrocoagulation. Such measures reduce the likelihood of relapse. After surgery, the patient is assigned physiotherapy procedures with the correct diet.
With cracks in the anus, the patient does not need special medications. It is recommended to enrich the diet with boiled vegetables with vegetable oils, and exclude meat and dairy products for a while. Often there is blood after stool, the causes of which lie in the anal fissure.
Prophylaxis
It is impossible to accurately predict bloody stools. At risk are people suffering from gastritis, stomach ulcers, hemorrhoids and other diseases of the anus and gastrointestinal tract. Therefore, they should be given special attention in the prevention of such diseases.
Proper nutrition is essential for recovery. To avoid gastrointestinal diseases, you must adhere to the following tips:
- Eat regularly and often, 4-5 times a day. The main calorie load should fall on the first half of the day.
- Drink about two liters of clean water daily (not including coffee, tea and liquid food).
- Reduce consumption of foods containing simple carbohydrates (baked goods, sweets, etc.).
- Add more fiber and coarse fibers (vegetables, fruits and bran) to the diet.
- Eat fermented milk products regularly.
These simple rules will help to avoid constipation and gastrointestinal disorders, pain in the anus.
- In addition to proper nutrition, it is necessary to take alcohol carefully. Frequent alcohol consumption disrupts fat metabolism, injures the stomach and intestinal mucosa. Stool with blood without pain in an adult is a sign of such disorders.
- Smoking is the first enemy of people suffering from hemorrhoids. Nicotine can cause frequent urge to defecate, leading to the formation of nodules. In addition, smoking increases blood clotting. This can lead to thrombosis of the anus, which causes necrosis of the hemorrhoids. If blood is visible on toilet paper after stool, this may indicate similar diseases.
- The main rule of successful prevention of loose stools with bloody discharge is a timely visit to doctors. Any person needs to be tested for occult blood in the stool and total culture at least once every six months. If you have regular discomfort in the abdominal area or anus, you should see a specialist. This will prevent many serious illnesses. For example, in 95% of cases, it was possible to prevent the development of intestinal cancer with a systematic examination of the patient.
Do not forget about physical education. Regular exercise, combined with proper nutrition, will help to reduce the content of internal fat that impairs the functioning of the digestive system.