Blood in stool

Blood in stool
Classification and external resources
Specialty	Gastroenterology
ICD-9-CM	578.1
DiseasesDB	19317
MedlinePlus	003130

In medicine, when referring to human feces, blood in stool looks different depending on (1) how early it enters the intestines (and thus how much digestive action it has been exposed to) and on (2) how much there is (a little bit, more than a little, or a lot). This is why bright red blood in the stool has different clinical significance (and a different name) than brown or black blood in the stool. Thus the term can refer either to melena, with more blackish appearance, originating from upper gastrointestinal bleeding, or to hematochezia, with more red color, originating from lower gastrointestinal bleeding. The term "blood in stool" is usually not used to describe fecal occult blood, which refers to blood that is not visible and thus is found only after chemical testing is performed.

In infants, the Apt test can be used to distinguish fetal hemoglobin from maternal blood.

List of causes

Common causes of blood in the stool include:

• Anal fissure
• Colorectal cancer^{[1][2][3][4][5]}
• Crohns disease^[6]
• Ulcerative colitis^[7]
• Internal hemorrhoids^[8][9]
• Inflammatory enteritis - inflammation of the small intestine, which may be caused by various forms of food poisoning as well as by other conditions:^[10]
  • E. coli enteritis, the most common cause of travelers' diarrhea^[11]
  • Campylobacter enteritis^[12]
  • Shigellosis^[13]
  • Salmonellosis (salmonella enteritis/samonella enterocolitis)^[14][15]
  • Bacterial gastroenteritis^[16]
  • Staphylococcus aureus^[10]
  • Radiation enteritis^[17]
• Diverticulosis^[18]
• Upper gastrointestinal bleeding^[19]
• Peptic ulcer disease^[20]
• Esophageal varices^[21]
• Gastric cancer^[22]
• constipation

See also

• Fecal occult blood

References

1. "Colon Cancer Symptoms - What are Colon Cancer Symptoms". Coloncancer.about.com. 2009-01-20. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
2. "Colon cancer: Symptoms". MayoClinic.com. 2011-08-13. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
3. Lenz, Heinz-Josef (2009-03-06). "What are Early Symptoms of Colorectal Cancer? Watch out for Small Changes". Alexandria, Virginia, United States: Fight Colorectal Cancer. Archived from the original on 2009-03-10. Retrieved 2013-02-23.
4. "Colon Cancer Symptoms - Colorectal Cancer Symptoms". Webmd.com. 2010-10-31. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
5. "Crohn's Disease: Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD): Merck Manual Home Edition". Merckmanuals.com. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
6. "Crohn's disease: Symptoms". MayoClinic.com. 2011-08-09. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
7. "Ulcerative Colitis - Symptoms, Causes and Treatments of Ulcerative Colitis". Webmd.com. 2010-10-07. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
8. Hemorrhoids, National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health.
9. Hemorrhoids: Symptoms, Mayo Clinic.
10. MedlinePlus Encyclopedia Enteritis
11. MedlinePlus Encyclopedia E. coli enteritis
12. MedlinePlus Encyclopedia Campylobacter infection
13. Shigellosis, National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
14. MedlinePlus Encyclopedia Salmonella enterocolitis
15. "Salmonella infection: Symptoms". MayoClinic.com. 2011-04-16. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
16. MedlinePlus Encyclopedia Bacterial gastroenteritis
17. MedlinePlus Encyclopedia Radiation enteritis
18. "Diverticulitis: Diverticular Disease: Merck Manual Home Edition". Merckmanuals.com. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
19. Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding at eMedicine
20. "Peptic ulcer: Symptoms". MayoClinic.com. 2011-01-06. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
21. "Esophageal varices: Symptoms". MayoClinic.com. 2010-10-30. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
22. Gastric Cancer at eMedicine